


Consonance and Dissonance

by EspadaIV, JKRobertson



Series: Consonance and Dissonance [1]
Category: Bleach
Genre: Alan Rickman Fixation, Alternate Universe - Classical Music, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Betrayal, Celebrities, Cheating, Dishonesty, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Evil Aunt, F/M, Final Fantasy VII references, First Love, Friends to Lovers, Harry Potter References, Hurt/Comfort, Instagram, Lemon, Lingerie, Loss of Virginity, Much Ado About Nothing, Online Friendship, Online Relationship, Online Romance, Sex, Sexual Harassment, Smut, Social Media, Strangers to Lovers, YouTube, lying, musician - Freeform, not slow burn, ulquihime
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-12-06
Packaged: 2020-05-02 08:48:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 25
Words: 188,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19195585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EspadaIV/pseuds/EspadaIV, https://archiveofourown.org/users/JKRobertson/pseuds/JKRobertson
Summary: Successful YouTube musician, ObscurasIV, and his favorite commenter, Vega.Strife00, have had an uneventful and anonymous internet friendship. It was nice. It was comfortable. Except Obscuras developed feelings for Vega and has secretly been pining over the words on the screen.He's about to head off to college with his best friend with benefits, Nel who has feelings for him.College puts him into social situations that he wants no part of. So what happens when he has college professors who just want to stick him in groups with a redhead who always seems to run late?Meanwhile, Vega is trying to turn over a new leaf in her own life, but is thwarted by a sleezeball mentor and jealous peers who want to keep her stuck in the same routine.A masquerade tale of jealousy and new love combined into showing the lives of two people bound together. What happens when internet anonymity fails and on online spark turns into an offline flame?College/musician/social media AU





	1. Sing A Song For Me

**Author's Note:**

> THIS IS A WORK OF FICTION IN AN ALTERNATE UNIVERSE. We do not own Bleach nor the characters used. They belong to their respective owners. Please feel free to comment or leave a review. We reply to comments! Kudos are awesome too. Thank you for reading!
> 
> [ULQUIHIME DISCORD](https://discord.gg/JbdPDcb)  
> EspadaIV can be reached at [HERE ON TUMBLR](http://espada-iv.tumblr.com/)  
> JKRobertson can be reached at [HERE ON TUMBLR](https://jkrobertson.tumblr.com/)  
> Want fic updates? [EIV+JKR on Tumblr](http://eiv-jkr.tumblr.com/)  
> So we are back at it with another AU for you UlquiHime fans. This fic is LONG. It's almost 500,000 words and we're breaking it up into parts, so this will be a series.

“You've got a comment.”

That’s all his long-time best friend said that started this entire obsession over two years ago. He’d been on Youtube and Instagram for years but never really posted anything. He watched and favorited videos. It was the summer between his sophomore and junior year of high school when he felt mopey. In a fit of sadness, he uploaded a video of himself singing and playing the Martin acoustic guitar he loved so much.

It wasn’t often he went seeking validation or approval from people but when it happened, the need for it hit hard. All he wanted to do was make music.

It was a stupid song. It was pointless. Stupid Kelly Clarkson’s hit _Since U Been Gone_. Nel loved it. She encouraged him to do it. She sat with him in his bedroom while he sang.

Ulquiorra peered at the teal-haired female's head with a glare. He was laying on his back on her bed staring at the ceiling. “What?” he asked her

“You have a comment. It reads like it’s from some kid.” Nelliel said, glancing back at him.

Of course, Nel was stalking his social media accounts.

She’d been acting weird ever since it happened. Normally, Nel hovered around him but since that truth or dare makeout session in the basement of the teen girl’s house, she’d been bitchy. Snippy. Possessive almost.

“Yeah? What’s it say?”

“It’s from a _Vega.Strife00_. Let me go see what this train wreck looks like.” Nel stopped speaking for a moment. “Nothing. It’s some anon. You’ve got a stalker, Cifer.”

He had scoffed at his friend and continued to lay there and listen to music, letting the ambient notes wash over him.

The green-eyed male was pulled out of his memories by the same teal-haired girl yanking his arm, shaking him from those more innocent days. His glance shifted towards her as they stood in line to see a new movie. He didn’t want to be out in public. People were dumb. They were assholes. “What Nel?”

“I asked how your little internet girlfriend was,” she teased with a smile.

“Tch, she’s not my girlfriend. We’re two nameless and faceless people hiding behind a screen and corresponding over social media,” he answered. “You’re not allowed--”

“I’m not,” came her reply. She obviously knew what he was going to say.

Nel wasn’t allowed to get jealous. That was their agreement. They weren’t dating. That’s what they agreed to.

He wanted to roll his eyes at her but didn’t.

Ulquiorra Cifer was grateful for his friend but sometimes she was damn annoying. He’d come to live in Ohio several months after he turned four years old. His mother and father were recently divorced. John Cifer had asked for custody of Ulquiorra. Maria Cifer said it was fine. She was too busy being a career woman to raise a young child. The music industry didn’t wait for people who wanted to take time off to raise a family.

The town was cozy. It was where John grew up and he decided Los Angeles wasn’t a good place to raise a child. It was big and loud. It was riddled with crime and greed. It wasn’t a good city to be a single parent. Sure the culture was rich and the experiences would be plenty but Ulquiorra would be a number. There was no way he would be an individual. The pale, green-eyed boy needed a community which would nurture him.

Ulquiorra didn’t remember much about his mother. He friended her on facebook but other than texts and an occasional phone call, he really didn’t speak to her which was fine with him. The kid understood the need for success and accomplishments but his mother didn’t bother to reach out to him even as he got older.

It didn’t really matter.

He had other people to care about. There was his paternal grandmother. There was his father and his on again/off again boyfriend. There was his best friend.

Ulquiorra had known Nelliel since the day he moved into that two-story house that sat on the quiet street. Her mother had brought her and her brother over to greet him and his dad. The boy had hidden behind his father to peer at the blonde with big taupe eyes and the red cheeks. Her face lit up and automatically they were hand in hand, racing off to play on the swing set.

“I’m Nel! That’s my brother Pesche. He’s an idiot.”

“I am not!” The blond boy yelled at her.

And that’s how a fourteen-year friendship started. Nel was on the verge of destroying it with her behavior though. Ulquiorra had no interest in her or anyone else in a romantic way. He felt no desire toward his friend. She tried to gain his interest but nothing worked.

The bikinis he would glance at then turn his head away. The accidental towel slips or changing in front of him would be ignored. Ulquiorra wasn’t gay. He knew that much. It was just no one seemed to interest him.

Well, that wasn’t true.

He liked the mysterious commenter that popped up all those months ago but he never crossed any lines with this Vega. He didn’t know what they looked like. He didn’t know their gender. Ulquiorra was afraid to find this stuff out. Putting a face with a name could mean that there was the potential to lose interest on his part.

Ulquiorra didn’t want that.

Vega challenged him with how they thought. They made him question himself on a regular basis. Every time he uploaded a video to Youtube or a picture to Instagram he waited for a comment from Vega to pop up in his notifications. They would tell him what they liked about the video or what he could work on.

Nel would just kiss his ass.

_“You did great!”_

_“You look great!”_

_“I’m so proud of you. It was perfect.”_

He never thought so. Nothing he did was ever perfect. Vega pointed this out and he improved for his next post or next video.

Nel wasn’t allowed to get jealous. There was no need to get jealous of the commenter. Vega was just words on a screen. Vega obviously had knowledge of musical performances and singing. Ulquiorra was drinking in this knowledge and applying it to better himself. Vega helped him and it made his fanbase grow.

It happened at the end of last year. It was Christmas, there was snow on the ground. It was late at night. The best friends were trying to build a snowman in Nel’s backyard which escalated into a snowball fight then into Nel chasing Ulquiorra around the dark yard.

Ulquiorra shouldn’t have done it but he stuffed snow down Nel’s pants. She tripped him and then fell on top of him. It was cold in the snow but for some reason, Ulquiorra thought it would be nice just to see what it was like to plant a kiss on Nel. It was an experiment.

To be honest, he didn’t expect her to react the way she did, sliding her hands into his hair and returning the kiss. After a moment or two, Ulquiorra turned and dumped her on the ground then stood. The two of them agreed to date, sure, but they weren’t exclusive. The boy used the term loosely while Nel continued to get more and more clingy. She still went out with other people.

After three months, things got physical. Ulquiorra watched from her bed as she undressed. He didn’t desire Nel. Sure, she was attractive but there was nothing there that caught his interest. They had conversations which led to fights.

Ulquiorra agreed to try the whole sexual activities thing as long as they didn’t actually have sex. Of course, being the hypersexual being that Nel was, the teal haired female was not happy. It was that or nothing. He had already threatened to ghost her and never talk to her again if she continued to push the subject.

So, they fooled around. After each time, Ulquiorra would rush home to wash himself off or he’d do it in the bathroom at Nel’s house. She thought his little OCD was cute. Ulquiorra knew it was annoying. He found it annoying.

His hands had to be clean. His clothing immaculate. Nothing could be out of place. It was how he functioned. It was how he felt like he was in control of something in his life. Nel knew all of this and yet, she still found ways to make him uncomfortable.

When they graduated, Ulquiorra’s mom offered to fly him and Nel out to L.A. as a graduation present. That’s when the first major incident happened.

They were sitting on the deck of his mother’s Malibu Hills home, looking out at the city. The lights twinkled in the darkness. His mom had fucked off to some party or was trying to spit out another money making artist so they had the house to themselves.

“Ulqui,” Nel whined.

“What?” he asked from the lounge chair he reclined on with his hands behind his head, eyes closed.

“I think it’s time.”

Time? What was it time for? When he looked over at Nel she held up a condom and was completely naked. The dark-haired male sputtered and made excuses before escaping inside the house. Once they got back to Ohio, things seemed to return to normal. Nel never said anything about what happened in California.

Ulquiorra woke up. He went to work at the local coffee shop his dad owned when he was scheduled. He started going through his things. College was approaching; the end of August would begin a new adventure. He thought he’d go to the university of his choice by himself.

No. That wasn’t happening.

Nel applied and was accepted to the same school as Ulquiorra. It irritated him. This information started a screaming match on Ulquiorra’s day off in the middle of June. The kid was glad his dad was at work that day.

“You don’t even fucking like school,” he stated.

“And? Maybe I know it’s my only chance to be close to you. Jesus, Ulq. You’re fucking dense.”

His brow furrowed with irritation. “What? How am I dense?”

“I did it because I love you and I want us to be together!”

“ _WHAT_?”

After that Nel had him pinned against the wall and was kissing him. Her hands seemed to be everywhere and he didn’t complain. His body was actually responding to her without him having to overanalyze everything. His best friend jerked him off and it took almost an hour to get to that point. She gave him head and it took about as long too. Afterward, Ulquiorra and Nel lay on the floor of his room, her body lying halfway on top of his.

“Ulqui?”

“What?”

“Are you gay like your dad? Maybe that’s--”

“No, that’s not it Nel. Maybe I am--” Ulquiorra didn’t know the way to explain it that wouldn’t send her into having a major meltdown. “Maybe I’m one of those other sexualities? Maybe I’m asexual or demisexual. I mean I enjoy looking at women. Men, so far, do nothing for me.”

He heard the heavy sigh come from her lips. “Maybe you don’t like me,” she said.

This caused Ulquiorra to look at Nel. “What? Of course, I like you. I wouldn’t--”

“That’s not what I meant. Maybe you’re more attracted to the people behind those screen names rather than me.”

She had to say that. She had to bring it up. How the hell could someone be so jealous of someone who he’d only exchanged comments with and liked their comments on his pictures? There had been no interaction between him and-- “Vega.”

He didn’t mean to say it out loud.

“Vega,” she repeated.

“You think I have feelings for Vega?” Ulquiorra had to laugh at this. “No, Nel. I’m just weird and--”

“It’s okay, Ulq; I get it.”

He knew it would be useless to refute her statement. She wouldn’t listen. Nel didn’t get what he was saying at all. He didn’t know what was wrong with him. Ulquiorra knew he didn’t tick like a normal, warm-blooded male. He was rather odd at times, he knew this. He was unconventional when it came to certain aspects of his life.

A couple weeks went by and Ulquiorra was sitting in Nel’s room with his guitar in his lap. He was playing some chords and generally fooling around, trying to come up with some music. He wasn’t aware that Nel was recording video of him singing and playing.

She knew better than that. He didn’t want anyone to know what he looked like. He didn’t want anyone to see his face. When he was done singing, Ulquiorra looked up to see her giving him a dazzling smile.

He returned the gesture briefly, giving Nel one of his rare grins that showed off his teeth and the two dimples in his cheeks. Maybe he was attracted to Nel. Maybe he needed to give her a chance.

So he did and things were okay until the first week of August hit.

“This is ridiculous.” Nel stood in his room with her arms crossed over her chest.

Ulquiorra was sitting in one of his desk chairs tuning his guitar, “What is ridiculous?”

“This Vega and the number of comments they’ve left you. Also the messages. Come on.”

“Why do you have my phone Nel?”

“Because I’m your girlfriend?”

Ulquiorra opened his mouth then closed it. They never agreed to that. They were dating. They had a friend with benefits thing going on but it was more for her than it was for him. She had no business on his phone. There was nothing but comments and DMs between him and Vega, but still, Nel was being rude.

She threw his phone onto his bed. “Are you recording today?”

His mouth drew into a thin line. “I was but you--”

“Don’t. You should just stop doing it. You don’t even like putting yourself out there. I pushed you to do it.” Nel stood there with her hands on her hips.

Green eyes leveled a stare at the teal-haired female. “What do you want, Nel?”

Her answer led to what he thought of as the third incident.

“I want you.”

He took her out that night. They drove through the country roads to some parking lot in the middle of nowhere. She wanted him; fine. In the end, Ulquiorra chickened out. He couldn’t do it. He didn’t want to have sex with Nel.

The air inside the car was warm. The two people laying in the back seat huffed as they caught their breath. Sweat collected on their bodies. Nel’s back was against Ulquiorra’s chest. They were both naked. Ropes of come decorated Nel’s thighs.

This was happening more and more often and it was usually Nel who initiated things. She would come onto the green-eyed graduate hot and heavy. What they did was risky but it was the only sexual contact that Ulquiorra would allow himself with her.

“You lasted longer this time,” Nel managed to say.

“Yeah?”

“Why does it take you so long? Most eighteen-year-olds can come quick.”

The dark-haired teen laughed. “I don’t know but I wish I could be a minute man. I wouldn’t waste a couple of hours of my day trying to get off,” Ulquiorra said. He lifted Nel off his lap before sitting up and scooting back. He turned his body and put his feet on the floor.

She cuddled up to him. “You okay?” Nel asked.

“You need to clean up,” Ulquiorra answered, handing her several paper towels from the roll he kept in the back seat. He was already wiping away the mess on his legs and groin.

Nel frowned but took the offered items from him. “Ulqui?”

“Nelliel?”

“Why can’t we do the normal thing and just sit in silence, enjoying each other’s company?”

He had to refrain from showing irritation at her. She knew why. “Nel, stop,” Ulquiorra chided.

She sighed. “I thought you were going to fuck me.”

“I don’t want you.”

“What?”

He hadn’t meant to say that. He didn’t mean to say those words out loud and to Nel. “I mean I didn’t want to. Not right now. It seems--I don’t want to lose my virginity in my car.”

“You meant what you said the first time,” Nel stated. She sniffled. “How long have we been friends? You were just going to continue to string me along, weren’t you? Hashtag, waste her time. You should post that on Instagram for your precious Vega to comment on.”

Nel said nothing to him during the drive back into town. She didn’t even talk to him a week after that. Whenever he saw her, she would turn red and look away from Ulquiorra. It made him feel awful.

The weekend before they were supposed to leave for university, Ulquiorra ran into Nel. “Hey,” he said. That two weeks had been the longest they had gone without speaking to each other.

“Hey.”

“You still driving up with me?” Ulquiorra asked.

Nel shrugged. “Pesche says he’ll take me. He has nothing else to do. What dorm are you in?”

“One of the co-ed ones. I think it starts with a R or something. Nel...”

Her head turned and she stared at him with a guarded expression. “What?”

“I didn’t mean what I said. I didn’t want to in the car. It’s cramped and--”

“What’s your excuse every other time?”

“I didn’t want to. I don’t want to. It’s not just you. No one interests me like that.” Ulquiorra bit his lip and ran a hand through his hair. “I need more time. In the meantime, I kinda miss my best friend.”

“Ulqui.” Her voice had a whiny lilt to it.

And just like that, they were best friends again but there was a certain underlying tension to their relationship.

***

“You are going to do a concert class next month.”

“A what?”

“A concert class,” the professor with nut-brown hair and rectangular glasses said in a smooth voice, his lips carving a predatory smile across the lower half of his face. Sousuke Aizen was one of four tenured vocal performance instructors on staff, and he took full advantage of his position. He looked up and down the pretty young woman’s figure slowly. “Usually freshmen don’t do them, but you’re Claire Cartwright’s niece. It’s to be expected that you will be more accomplished than your peers.

Orihime sighed. Yes, she was Claire Cartwright’s niece. The Claire Cartwright. The soprano who had raised her since the age of three was a Julliard-educated classical singer with decades of performance experience and dozens of recordings under her belt. She had retired only recently due to irreparable vocal cord damage. It had been written about as a devastating loss to the classical music world. Sometimes in those articles, the writers would mention Ms. Cartwright’s niece and protégé, the young Miss Orihime Inoue, who had been studying under Ms. Cartwright since the age of twelve. Ms. Cartwright was not only a great singer but also a generous spirit, who graciously took a step back from more demanding performance schedules to raise her niece after the untimely deaths of her sister and brother-in-law, Allison and Kenta Inoue.

“How many pieces?” Orihime asked, referring to the concert class, which was more or less a recital that a grouping of selected music department students participated in once or twice a semester.

“Three. You may use your two audition pieces from when you applied to the music program, but I’ll have you learn one of the Brahms' _Lieder_ in addition to those. Don’t worry Orihime, I would never put undue pressure you,” the middle-aged man said, brushing a piece of hair over her shoulder with his fingertips before sitting at his piano bench.

Great, another one of these vocal coaches, the nineteen-year-old woman thought. Freshly nineteen, by the way; her birthday had been yesterday, which coincidentally was her first day of school at OSU. Come to think of it, she had just turned fourteen when her aunt introduced her to another vocal coach, Mr. Miles Johnston, who had also been inappropriately handsy. Orihime had been relieved when the old man died before he had done any worse than squeezing her ass. That was saying nothing of a couple more of the voice instructors that had come and gone throughout her life since her aunt had decided to mold Orihime in her own image.

Professor Aizen, compared to the others, was a relatively young, handsome creep who probably got his way with attractive coeds more often than one might think. The thought made Orihime slouch in on herself in a self-protective posture.

“Ahem,” the professor barked. “Shoulders back, tits out. You can’t sing hunched over like that. Besides, it’s a waste of your finer assets.”

Orihime fought the nearly overwhelming urge to roll her eyes. Yes, she knew, she had a nice chest. Despite the inappropriate comment from Aizen, she dutifully obeyed his directive. This was her first class with the voice professor who would guide her through her entire four-year music performance degree. It was important to develop a good rapport, regardless of what kind of a man he was. She went through her vocal exercises and made notes on sheet music for Brahms’ _Dein Blaues Auge_ , and sang through it a few times before her time for the day was up.

She was happy to get the hell out of there. She still had chamber choir to go to, and then she planned to hit the gym. Choir was her last in-person class of the day on Wednesday. She was planning on working out with her new roommate at the only all-girls dormitory on campus, Tatsuki Arisawa. She had been surprised to learn she would be rooming with another student with a Japanese name, and half expected the girl to be an exchange student.

Both girls had a lot of unmet expectations after their first introduction. Orihime took after her mother and did not look especially Japanese, with her long, dark reddish-brown hair, fair skin, and predominately Eurasian, doll-like features. She had her father’s eye color, clear skin, and short stature, and that was about it. Tatsuki was several inches taller than Orihime’s five foot two inches. She was not an exchange student, and her mother was of Chinese descent. She was a general education tomboy interested in fitness and martial arts. Like Orihime, she didn’t speak a lick of Japanese. They immediately bonded over the shared idea that whoever was in charge of room assignments must be the kind of well-intentioned but misinformed individual who might assume that because the girls had a shared heritage, they would automatically have lots in common.

It turned out that despite first impressions, that assumption was true. While Orihime was girly and dressed in fashionable, if somewhat theatrical clothing, compared to the more customary sweatpants/jeans and t-shirt combination that most other students, including Tatsuki, wore, the girls both were into fitness and worked out daily. Tatsuki’s routine was significantly more intense than Orihime’s, but it was nice to have someone to meet in the locker room and walk back to the dorms with after her barre class. They were both from out-of-state. Tatsuki was born and raised outside of Seattle, and Orihime was born in San Francisco and lived there until her parents died in a car wreck, then was sent to Minneapolis to live with her aunt. Neither of the roommates were stand-out students in high school, although both of them were in the top third of their classes. Both of them were currently single. They both liked to spend their downtime online. Tatsuki had a lot of athletic clubs she was into and Orihime had her practice, both for her classical voice and piano and for her secret endeavors: lounge acts and cover bands.

It hadn’t taken her long to find a bassist and drum player to practice with. They were one pianist away from a lounge act, and there were plenty of weddings and cocktail parties that would be more than happy to hire an act fronted by a beautiful young woman with a sweet voice wearing a cleavage-baring dress.

She had yet to find a cover band but Orihime had been thinking of breaking out of that and doing some solo gigs. She had spent the summer practicing acoustic guitar, and although she wasn’t very good at it, she could do some basic chords. She always had her high-intermediate piano skills to fall back on, but she had really been trying to improve her guitar abilities. She had been receiving help in that endeavor from an unlikely source; a YouTuber, with a large and growing following that went by the name _ObscurasIV_ , had been answering her questions about it.

Truth be told, this back and forth between Orihime and the online musician had not just begun over the summer; she had accidentally found the first video he had ever uploaded a couple of years ago. She had been searching for a cover of Kelly Clarkson’s, _Since U Been Gone_ , and was unsatisfied with what the algorithm picked out for her based on “relevance”. She wanted to find a fresh take on the song and turned to YouTube for inspiration. She decided to filter the search results by date: newest first, and found a video with zero views. She listened to a young man play acoustic guitar and sing the song in a softly emotional, kind of rich, sometimes gentle/sometimes aggressive baritone voice with a decent high register and lots of connection between both extremes of his voice.

Orihime immediately felt drawn to the singer’s timbre and saw lots of potential in him. As a fellow musician, she felt compelled to comment on the video, encouraging him to continue and letting him know she really enjoyed his performance. She also felt obliged to point out that he would have better breath control if he phrased the verses differently, and that he would benefit from swallowing between phrases where he flipped into his high register to kind of reset the tension in his cords, but despite those pointers, she was really impressed and looked forward to more from him. She was his first subscriber.

At first there was no response from the singer, but Orihime hadn’t expected any. After a couple of weeks, he released another video, which she thumbs-upped and commented on again. She applauded his song selection and left a couple of constructive notes on his performance. After her second comment, he thumbs-upped that comment and her comment on the first video. Orihime was glad that he seemed to appreciate her sentiments.

When _ObscurasIV_ put out a third video, Orihime was surprised when she received a response to her comment on it. It was just a simple message: “Thanks for the comments and the critique. I tried some of the things you suggested and it works.”

Orihime responded, “Oh, my pleasure! I’m really glad it helped. I’ll be watching your videos in the future so keep making music. If you ever have any questions about what I’m talking about in my comments, let me know. XD”

This started a back and forth that continued until the present. And over the course of that time, _ObscurasIV_ had risen to a decent level of fame. He had over 800,000 YouTube subscribers and each video averaged into a couple hundred thousand views. He had a significant Instagram following as well. Orihime had worried that as he got more and more popular he would start to overlook her comments and be too busy or overwhelmed to respond to her direct messages, but he never did. He always responded.

She would never tell anyone this, but he was the person she talked to more consistently than anyone else. She sometimes would spend large chunks of time in the comments section of his social media accounts talking back and forth with him. This was not an issue most of the time. Orihime didn’t have a lot of friends in real life. Her aunt was very controlling. She didn’t allow Orihime to have a lot of freedom to do what normal teenagers did. She was the one who insisted Orihime follow in her footsteps as a classical vocalist, even though deep down, Orihime had no interest in classical voice. She loved popular and rock music. Her favorite genre was 90’s alt rock. She had been in a Weezer/Oasis cover band in high school, which she kept secret as best she could from her aunt. Her correspondence with _ObscurasIV_ was her only completely unmonitored escape from the square hole that the rounded Orihime was being hammered into by the adults in her life.

That changed about a year after she started corresponding with the online musician. She met a guy in school; an exchange student from Brazil. She was very attracted to him and thought for sure that it was true love. She got swept away and completely disregarded her aunt, blowing off the woman’s lectures and sneaking away at every opportunity to spend time with Paulo. She went to the free clinic and started taking birth control pills and lost her virginity to him a month later. It was a whirlwind of hormones and fantasy and lots and lots of sex. Orihime was sure that he was the one and that no one could come between them.

She still took the time to comment on _ObscurasIV’s_ videos though. She liked every single one. She’d give the encouragement and hit the like button like it was her job. She didn’t do the back and forth in the comments section every time, though.

All good things must come to an end, she learned, when Paulo’s term at her high school ended and he went back to Brazil. They had agreed that their love was pure and true before he left and wanted to continue a long-distance relationship. Orihime was devastated the day he left town. She cried for a week. The next week she was a bit better. The week after that she was almost fine. Shit. She realized only then that it probably wasn’t love with Paulo; it had been lust. As soon the Brazilian was out of her physical space, she found that she really didn’t miss him all that much and almost any other male attention filled that void for her. She ended up making out with a guy from her choir a month after Paulo left. She cried as she chatted with him online with him afterward and admitted that she had cheated. Those tears immediately dried up when he admitted that he had cheated too, but it had only taken him a week to do so. Whatever, Paulo. Have a nice life, she said.

She went back to how she had been pre-Paulo, but now she had a new appetite. Sex was never very far from her mind. But as pretty as she was, and as much as she was keen, it wasn’t readily available to her. The company she kept in real life was comprised of a lot of boys who were either confused about their sexualities or just didn’t have a lot of confidence. She ended up getting another boyfriend a couple of months later, only to have him come out to her as gay after a night of making out in the backseat of her car.

The majority of the rest of her experience had been through games of truth or dare, but there was the occasional short-term relationship that ended up going nowhere. Again, her only constant through the rest of her high school career was with _ObscurasIV_. She found that she enjoyed communicating with him infinitely better than the interaction she had with people in real life. Her aunt was pleased that she had stopped going out as much and took her reclusive ways as dedication to her studies. The older woman had no idea that computers were used for anything other than work.

Orihime was starting to feel confused by the strange, anonymous online relationship she had forged. It felt intense. It felt intimate. It felt real. But in reality, he had no idea who she was. She knew that. All the same, she couldn’t help the feeling that he was important to her in a way that no one else was.

After her workout with Tatsuki, she went back to the dorm and took a shower. She walked back to her room and powered up her laptop, climbed into her swiveling desk chair and checked his accounts. No new posts in the past twenty-four hours. No new posts in the past week, if she was keeping track. He must be busy. She decided to send him a direct message on Instagram:

** Vega.Strife00 **
    
    
    Hey, you’ve been away for awhile.  
    
    I hope everything is going alright for you.
    A lot of change has been in the air for me recently,
    and I think a song might make me feel a little more secure.  
    
    Hope to hear your voice again soon.  
    
    I miss you. - Vega.


	2. First Day Jitters

Ulquiorra stared at his laptop and then Nel who was sitting on his bed inside his dorm room. She was fucking painting her toenails and the smell was giving him a headache. 

“Is there a reason you can’t do that in your own room?” The male asked as he turned the office chair back to the desk. Nel had already told his roommate to fuck off, not that Szayel wanted anything to do with the pair. The guy with baby pink hair was weird. 

“Roommate doesn’t like it. Why are you all the way up here? We should switch roomies!” Nel replied with a smirk.

Ulquiorra liked having a room on the tenth floor of Robinson Tower. It was nice to see the city sprawled out like it was. He could see that black tower that sat downtown. “Nel, school just started. Could you stop?” He asked.

He would have said more but his phone vibrated in his pocket. Someone had sent him a message. That was the only time his phone made a sound. “I need to focus, so could you just please, please leave me alone for a fucking hour?”

The teal-haired female didn’t like this answer. She scoffed and left the room though. All Ulquiorra wanted to do was record a song or something. Ever since he had apologized to Nel, it had been a constant struggle to get anything done. He pulled his phone from his pocket and looked at it.

 _Vega.Strife00_ had sent him a message. He read it with one corner of his lips tilting slightly upward. He decided to send a message back.

 

** ObscurasIV **

_Hey, sorry for the silence._

_College started yesterday._

_Been moving into my dorm._

_Best Friend is being a bitch, again._

_What song?_

 

He sent the message off to Vega but didn’t expect a reply right away. Sometimes their correspondence went days to weeks without either exchanging words except through public comments. Vega still liked everything he did though. 

Orihime heard a notification on her phone and spun around in her desk chair from the video game she had been watching Tatsuki play.   _ObscurasIV_ had responded! Already! She grinned like an idiot as she read until she got to the best friend part. She had some resentment growing toward this figure on his behalf.  For the past several months, the musician only seemed to be happy when the “best friend” wasn’t around. She sighed and stretched out her neck as she considered his question about which song.

She had a bunch of songs she would like to hear him sing.  She had one in mind that she wasn’t sure he’d be into, but he had always been receptive to her suggestions in the past and the lyrics to the song seemed to fit the change they were both facing rather well.  Plus the song was catchy as hell. She replied:

 

** Vega.Strife00 **

_Really?!  I just started classes yesterday, too, on my birthday, no less.  Weird, huh?_

_I’m all settled in my dorm, though.  I moved out of state for school._

_I’m sorry about your friend…  that seems like a test of patience._

_Anyway, for a song, how do you feel about “Feel Good Inc” by Gorillaz?  I think it suits our present circumstances, lol._

 

He waited, staring at his phone screen as he saw those three little dots that indicated that Vega was typing. Four messages popped up in a row. He gave a soundless snort of amusement at her reply.

 

** ObscurasIV **

_Gorillaz, eh? Could give it a shot._

_Can’t hold a candle to Damon Albarn though._

_Best friend is trying… you know about her._

_Anyway, I’ll see what I can do._

 

Similar to what the dark-haired male had done, Orihime sat, waiting as the ellipses faded in and out for the message to appear on her screen.  She laughed out loud and typed her response:

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Thank you for humoring me._

_You are different to DA but you sell yourself short, as usual._

_SIGH.  Again? I’m sorry._

_I don’t know what to tell you, and it’s not really my place to say anything, but personally, I would not want to be in that situation._

_TY!!!!  I’m excited!  XDDDDDDDDDDD_

 

Vega always knew how to make him chuckle or give that small smile he did. It was truly refreshing rather than dealing with Nel.

 

** ObscurasIV **

_My roomie is some weirdo..._

_He has a chemistry set thing_

_on his side of the room_

_I’m judging hardcore rn. Lol_

_I can’t say much. I got all my music shit here._

 

Ulquiorra put his phone down on the desk and then stood up, stretching. There were things he needed to test and work out. Would the acoustics of his dorm room match what he had at home? Would he have to seek out the music departments soundproof practice rooms? He decided to do a couple of test shots before recording an actual video.

Orihime was getting hungry.  She decided to write back once more before she went down to the cafeteria.

 

** Vega.Strife00 **

_O.o…  you sure he’s not cooking meth?_

_I’d be questioning things too._

_Also, he should thank you; chicks dig musicians._

_He’ll be able to bring girls back to your room and say your stuff is his,  lmao_

A legit laugh left his throat at the messages. It was hilarious because Szayel had already told him he was gay and Ulquiorra was not _his_ type. It was whatever though. The green-eyed teen was not interested in anyone… which was a complete and total lie on his part. 

After setting up his equipment and making sure his Martin D48 acoustic guitar was tuned properly, Ulquiorra set up his phone where it only showed his mouth, chest, and torso. He had never fully revealed his face on any social media. 

He pressed the record button.

“This is for a special friend. Their birthday was yesterday, so a late happy birthday to Vega Strife. Here’s _Feel Good Inc_ , Veggs.” 

With that Ulquiorra started playing his guitar and singing.

 

***

 

The evening came and went, and Orihime slept like a log.  She still wasn’t used to sharing her space with Tatsuki so it took her a long time to fall asleep.  She spent that time on the school’s virtual bulletin board writing ads for a pianist and looking to see if anyone had posted any message advertising their services.

She eventually succumbed to sleep with her phone in her hand.  She woke up late the next morning and had to scramble to get ready for her English class.  She didn’t have time to check her social media accounts. Luckily for her, the Humanities building was significantly closer to her dorm than the Fine Arts building was.  She took a quick shower, dressed in a short black pleated skirt, black semi-sheer tights, and a fitted dark gray, three-quarter sleeve length sweater with a slouchy neckline.  She put some black heeled ankle boots on at her door and made her way to class.

She didn’t notice the looks she received from other students, neither the appreciative nor the judgmental.  Her aunt had raised her to dress as though she were always on the way to an audition. It was normal for her.

She arrived in the classroom just as the teacher was walking in and picked the closest available desk near the door to sit in.  She offered her neighboring students a small, self-conscious smile before the teacher started to introduce himself and pulled up the semester syllabus on the overhead projector.  As soon as the teacher started talking, her expression morphed into one of schooled concentration and focus; another part of her personality that had been trained into her by her aunt Claire.  Orihime always put on a dutiful, respectful face for her superiors. Whether she was actually paying attention or not was irrelevant. It was appearances that counted to Claire Cartwright.

Punctuality was one thing he was a stickler about and Ulquiorra watched disapprovingly as a student scrambled through the door just before the professor did. It was probably someone who had spent the night partying. He shook his head and then focused on what the teacher was saying. 

“... you’re going to have an ongoing group assignment to work on worth forty percent of your grade for this class…”

Ugh. He hated group work. Nel usually latched onto him if they weren’t assigned groups. While his best friend fucked off, Ulquiorra was stuck doing most of the work. He would have to ask the professor if he could work alone.

“Please pair up in groups of two or three,”  The professor said, watching as people looked around bewildered.  “Oh come on, you’re all adults here. You don’t need me to hold your hand and make introductions for you.”

Orihime looked up and around her desk.  It appeared that most people had already paired up.  Perhaps they had arrived early and had an opportunity to make self-introductions before class.  She nibbled her lower lip as her eyes fell hopelessly on friendly-looking faces. Each time, her gaze was met with an apologetic expression as a pair or trio of students began grouping off.  She finally looked behind her. A singular frowning face met hers.

“Er, hi.  Have you found a partner yet?” she asked the displeased young man tentatively, blushing and tucking a long dark auburn strand of hair behind her ear.

Other people had gotten the hint when he stared at them and decided to pick someone else for their groups. Ulquiorra kept staring at the young woman who had walked into the room late. She was probably the last person he wanted to work with. When she spoke to him it was obvious that she hadn’t gotten the hint. “No,” he said. “I was expecting—“

“Great, we’ve all found a friend. Sit down next to each other and I’ll explain what we’re going to do!” The professor said, not leaving any room for arguments.

He almost sighed when she sat down next to him.

“My name’s Orihime,” she whispered.  “What’s yours?”

“It’s Ulquiorra.” He was not trying to get to know anyone. Knowing Nel, the moment she caught wind of him having to work with someone she’d throw a fit.

She smiled but said nothing as the professor started speaking again.  She took out a piece of paper though, and wrote in clear print, “Good, we both have kind of weird, unusual names.”  She passed the note to him without looking away from the instructor, appearing to anyone else that she had been focused on the man at the front of the room with complete sincerity.

Weird? Unusual? This woman seemed rather judgemental and snobbish by appearances. He took a pen out of the pocket of his jeans and scribbled on the sheet in all capital letters: **MY NAME ISNT WEIRD**.

She had clearly touched a nerve.  She wrote back. “Sorry! I have always been told my name was weird so I didn’t think anything of it.  I think your name sounds cool. Forgive me?” 

He felt the edge of the paper poking his hand and looked down at it, reading the words. He then glanced at the woman sitting beside him. So she knew what it was like to face ridicule and bullying over her name. Huh. This time in softer script he wrote: _Sorry, it’s just people mess up my name a lot or don’t bother pronouncing it correctly from the start._

“I’ll be sure to practice then.  How do you spell it? Mine is Orihime Inoue.  Inoue sounds like “ee-no-way”. What’s your last name?” she wrote on the page and passed it back to him.

“Ulh-kee-orr-ah,” he mumbled to her. There was no way he was going to write out how to properly say it. On the paper, he wrote two words; his last name and how to say it: “Cifer. Sigh-fer”.

She snagged the note from him and quickly jotted down the phonetic spelling of his name before she forgot, then tucked the note back into her notebook before tearing out another page.  The only thing she wrote on it was her name, campus email, o.inoue@osu.edu, and her telephone number then passed it to him.

The green-eyed male raised an eyebrow but nodded. He folded the paper in half and tore it along the seam, using the blank side to write down his name, email address which was a Gmail account and then his number. Ulquiorra even included a note: _don’t plan on checking campus email a lot, use the gmail_.

She took the note and read it, then turned her face toward him slightly and nodded once, employing her trademark sunny smile.  She put his note into her purse and turned her attention fully back to the professor.

 

***

 

After his first class, Ulquiorra texted Nel who was all the way across campus. Then he sent a message to Vega.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_I already hate college._

_I want to be a homeless bum._

_Lol._

 

Once again, he did not expect a reply right away. 

Once again, he was surprised.  Orihime was walking the opposite direction, toward the fine arts building, when her phone buzzed.  She read the message from _ObscurasIV_ , chuckled, and replied,

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Be careful what you wish for, lol._

_I’m not winning any hearts yet, that’s for sure._

_I think I managed to make an enemy already._

_I’m on my way to another class, but I hope to see an upload notification soon!_

 

He was on his way to some electronic music class. Ulquiorra wouldn’t see Nel until much later. Vega was easier to talk to than Nel.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Is that code for stop dming me?_

_Did you watch the IG story?_

_Have a good afternoon._

 

She scoffed aloud.

**Vega.Strife00**

_No! No! No!_

_If I was going to tell you not to DM me_

_I would hire one of those pilots that write it in smoke in the sky._

_In other words, I wouldn’t._

_I am saving the IG story for when I get home._

_Hope your afternoon is better than your morning._

 

That brought a smile to his face. It was small but still… he decided to do something that he never had done before. In the entire time he had been talking to Vega he had never sent them a picture. His stomach felt like it was filled with butterflies as he took a photo of just his smile then sent it with the next message.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Thanks Veggs. Ttyl._

***

 

Orihime had been in music theory class when her phone buzzed again.  She left it in her purse until the end of class, and even then she had to wait.  Two of her classmates came over to chat.

“So, Orihime, any luck with finding a pianist?” came the question from her work-in-progress jazz lounge quartet’s drummer, Keigo Asano.  He was somewhat obnoxious but a decent drummer, and he seemed to be joined at the hip to the more agreeable bassist, Mizuiro Kojima, both of whom she had met in this class.

“No, not yet.  I need to find an accompanist soon too, so hopefully I can kill two birds with one stone,” she responded, slightly distracted.  She had not forgotten that a message was waiting for her in her purse. 

“It would be amazing if we could get Ichigo Kurosaki to play with us.  That’s a pipe dream, though,” Mizuiro commented with a dreamy glaze in his eyes.

“Who?” Orihime asked, frowning somewhat. She had never heard of this guy.

“Are you _kidding_ me, Dollface?” Keigo cut in, looking affronted.  “He is like the king of the music department. He won some national award two years in a row and was a finalist in an international competition in Europe.  He is the best pianist this school has ever seen!”

Orihime raised an eyebrow.  “Yeah? If he is so famous, why have I never heard of him?  What’s he doing at OSU?”

Mizuiro sighed.  “He has family around here.  He has a full ride scholarship.  He was recruited to come here _before_ he won his competitions, that’s how good he is.  Besides, if you’re asking, what is Claire Cartwright’s niece doing at OSU?” he accused.

Orihime sighed.  “I have no idea.”  It wasn’t a lie. “I’ll call you if I find someone and then we can practice over the weekend, otherwise I’ll see you around or back here Monday,” Orihime said, packing her things and leaving for the practice rooms.

Once she got inside, she set down her belongings on a chair next to the piano and pulled out her phone. She leaned against the door and opened Instagram and saw the message from _ObscurasIV_.  She saw the picture and her eyes widened. She almost dropped the phone as she tapped on it to zoom in to see his smile.

Her heart skipped a beat.

She decided to be reckless as well.  She took her phone and contemplated taking a close up of her eyes, but decided a smile deserved a smile in return.  She put on some lip balm and checked her compact mirror to make sure there was nothing in her teeth, then took a picture that included the bottom of her nose, mouth with a softly open-lipped smile, and chin, with a little of her long hair showing, although the lighting in the practice room made it appear a flat dark brown.  She sent it along with the message:

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_My afternoon is much better now, thanks to you._

_I kind of want to watch your story now but I’m afraid I’ll squee in public._

_Talk to you soon :D. - Vega._

 

***

 

Nel sat beside Ulquiorra in the school’s extensive cafeteria munching slowly on the Pad Thai that sat in front of her. “So you got paired up on your first day? Wow,” she said shaking her head. “I am glad I declared a digital media major.”

He rolled his eyes as he sipped on the nasty machine cappuccino. He was somewhat put out that he wasn’t back home and working. “This is nasty. We need to find a good coffee shop somewhere. Ugh,” he complained. 

The teal haired woman smirked nudging his shoulder with hers. “You’re such a snob.” 

“You’re a snob. How are your classes?” 

“Easy,” Nel answered. “There is this one guy—well two guys… they are nice to look at. They’re models for my Drawing and Composition class.” 

Ulquiorra’s brows rose. Could this be; Nel’s attention could be shifted onto someone else? “Dumping me? Awesome,” he joked. 

“Did not say that. You’re my best friend and my boy—“ 

“No.”

His phone lay on the table; it buzzed and the screen lit up. He had Instagram notifications. He quickly dismissed them. Ulquiorra turned back to Nel to see her mouth in a thin line. “What? Jesus fucking Christ, Nel.”

“Vega? I saw your Instagram story. Veggs? Special friend?” She shook her head. “I bet you anything—your virginity— Vega is a female.”

There was no way in hell he would take that bet. “I don’t know. I didn’t ask. It’s not my business.”

 

***

 

After his last class of the day, Ulquiorra went back to his dorm room. All he had were instructions and syllabi to read over. No actual homework. It was different than what teachers in high school had told him would happen.

When he got inside the room and put his bag onto his bed, Ulquiorra decided to record a song. It wasn’t the Gorillaz song. It was something much more poignant and meaningful.

He brought his keyboard out from under his bed and set up his mics and the camera. Ulquiorra found sheet music for the song and the lyrics.

 _Hallelujah_ was one of the first songs he had taught himself how to play.

 _“I heard there was a secret chord…_ ”

An hour later the video was uploaded to YouTube.

 

***

 

When Orihime got home from the gym early in the evening, she showered and got into her standard dorm room wear: a negligee and silk robe.  In addition to her relatively fashionable daywear, she wore very fancy nightwear and underwear. She picked up her lingerie habit after Paulo had returned to Brazil and they were trying to make long distance work.  She needed to look sexy and she wasn’t comfortable sending nudes. After they broke up she found that she enjoyed the luxury for herself more than she had realized. A decent chunk of the money she earned singing at weddings and such went toward her intimate wear collection.

As soon as she was decent, she sat on her bed and put her headphones into her laptop jack then brought up her Instagram app.

She could die happy.

 _ObscurasIV_ had wished her happy birthday by name, and he had called her his special friend.  He had played a clip of the song she had requested. She clenched her teeth and fists and squealed in happiness.  She must have watched the story seventeen times, then recorded it onto her phone from her laptop. She wrote a direct message.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_OMG!!!!!_

_OMGGGGGGG!!!!_

_A birthday shoutout?!  I’m not worthy! Lolololol_

_Thank you so much, I can die happy now_

_Oh, I just got a YouTube notification!  I’ll talk to you there in a few minutes._

 

Orihime put her headphones back on and settled in to watch the YouTube video, expecting the full-length version of _Feel Good Inc_ , but instead got treated to a heart-wrenching version of Leonard Cohen’s _Hallelujah_.

It brought tears to her eyes.  He sounded so vulnerable and aching.  She could hear the emotional pain not only in his voice but through his keyboard.  What had happened to him between the time he had recorded the Instagram story and this video?  The rawness of the performance had caused the hair on her arms to stand on end. She wrote a short, honest comment:

 

**Vega.strife00 wrote:**

_“Flawless. T_T”_

 

Tatsuki was out.  With a lack of confidence, she took her acoustic guitar out of her closet and recorded a song for him in return.  It was simple and the guitar work was clumsy, but she thought it was still the best way to express how she felt. The song she chose to respond with was a song she had always mildly disliked, until now.  Now it felt relevant and fresh.

She recorded the video with the camera facing a poster of the anime character Trafalgar Law that hung at the foot of her bed, as she played and sang Carole King’s, _You’ve Got a Friend._ She sang it as she might sing a lullaby; in a soft, soothing tone.

When she was done, she uploaded it to YouTube and sent him a link in a DM on Instagram.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Your YouTube song made me worry that things are troubling you more than you let on._

_Please know that I think of you as a special friend as well._

_I’m sorry I’m not as fast a learner on the guitar as you were with vox._

_Here’s a link to something that I hope will make you feel better._

 

***

 

He knew singing such a classic song was risky. The next morning he woke up to hundreds of comments. His Instagram was flooded with comments too.

Ulquiorra felt overwhelmed by the attention but he scrolled through the messages. Had Vega heard it? He finally found her messages.

 

** ObscurasIV **

_Hey_

_you’ve been there from the beginning_

_so you deserve it_

_:)_

_I hope it wasn’t too forward_

_Or offended you_

 

Then he read the rest of her messages. Clicking on the link, Ulquiorra listened to the song and sighed. Nel was right. Vega was female.

_Fuck._

This was no longer an anonymous encounter. Vega had a voice. She had a smile. She caused butterflies to erupt in his stomach.

 

** ObscurasIV **

_The song was great._

_Thanks_

_I’m not that good at playing the piano or keyboard._

_I get by with my skills._

_Um, btw, you have a really nice smile._

 

He did not tell her that she was right or wrong about things troubling him more than what he let on. She didn’t need to know about Nel and him. Wasn’t like they would ever meet.

 

***

 

Orihime only had two classes on Fridays, one at ten in the morning and another at two in the afternoon.  The first one was aural music theory class, the second was speech. She woke up early that morning anyway, anxious to see if there was any reaction from Obscuras.  

There was.

She blushed furiously as she read the two messages she had received, and thought long and hard about how to respond.  She waited until after her shower and considered her response while she was standing under the hot water. It seemed to her that he was embarrassed to talk to her.  Oh well, it made sense; she had been mortified to send him her song but she was so moved by his that she felt compelled.

In the end, she was who she was, and online, that was someone who didn’t hold back her true opinions.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Thank you._

_Your smile will break hearts if you ever decide to share it with the masses_

_(it made me blush)_

_Anyway, I’m happy you liked the song._

_Your keyboard skills trump my guitar._

 

She sent it before she had a chance to second guess herself.

Shoot, she forgot.

 

** Vega.Strife00 **

_PS- Congratulations on the response to Hallelujah._

_It is well-deserved._

_I wasn’t trying to flatter you with my “flawless” comment._

_I was really moved, and clearly, I was not the only one._

_I could not find a single thing that needed improvement._

_And I listened to it at least fifteen times, Lmao._

 

She hesitated a bit before sending this message, thinking she sounded a bit stalkerish.  Screw it. She preferred being honest. She sighed; it was time to go to class.

 

***

 

He looked at Nel as she slipped into the seat beside him. It was some kind of advanced math, the only general education class they shared. “I thought you weren’t coming to any classes today,” he mumbled as he sipped his machine made, sugary cappuccino. Ulquiorra had to make it appear like he wasn’t awake yet, although he had been up for hours.

He didn’t want to deal with Nel.

“Hallelujah, huh? I saw Vega’s comment.” Nel smirked at him. She was in a bad mood. “Flawless. Cry, cry. Give me a break. You say I kiss your ass? She wants you.”

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes. “You are delusional. There is nothing that suggests she wants me or whatever you’re thinking,” he replied, reaching into his pocket for his phone which buzzed.

“Let me see,” the teal-haired woman said, reaching for the device. “Veggs must be really thirsty if you all—“

He only did it to shut her up. Ulquiorra kissed her quickly, letting his mouth touch hers. He gave her several more pecks before he pulled away and turned his phone off. He shouldn’t have done it. It was probably giving her the wrong idea. “It’s been nonstop since last night,” he said, voice quiet.

Glancing at Nel, she seemed shocked, touching her lips with the tips of her fingers. “Oh.”

When the class was over, Ulquiorra walked with Nel to her next class, allowing her to kiss him this time before he decided to hang around the cafeteria until speech started.

The comments were numbering into the thousands now. He saw them as he got himself a bottle of cold tea. Then Ulquiorra saw Vega’s messages. Break hearts? Nah. Not interested in anyone… He could keep telling himself that.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Maybe I should show my face fully on here_

_Make everyone swoon. Lol_

_I can send you the song file_

_I haven’t even gotten to YT yet._

_My Best Friend made some comment about it tho._

_She loves stalking my IG and YT for me._

_I’ll put Feel Good up soon. Still working on it._

 

Orihime had a long distance to walk between the arts and humanities buildings, and she ended up breaking into a jog to get to her speech class in time.  She was grateful that it was cool outside because the silky ivory blouse she wore would have shown any trace of sweat. She clomped up the stairs to the second floor of the building in her heeled ankle boots and when she arrived in the classroom she only looked slightly flushed from her exertion.  Taking a deep breath, she found a seat near the back of the room, and as she took it and crossed her patterned-pantyhose clad legs, the teacher came into the room. She sighed. She had been hoping to read the message she had gotten a notification for earlier before the class started.

He was too busy staring at his screen to see who slid into the seat next to him but as soon as he heard that sigh, Ulquiorra’s head popped up. He almost wanted to express his vexation at the auburn-headed female. “You again?” He asked in a quiet tone.

Orihime startled slightly before she recognized his face, then smiled as a reflex.  The teacher appeared busy organizing herself at the front of the room so Orihime did not worry about replying quietly, “Indeed, what a coincidence.  How are you today, Ulquiorra?”

“Can’t really complain. You?” It was just small talk. He was being civil.

“Good,” she answered in a breathy voice, smiling at him again and noticing that if maybe he smiled or looked a bit less displeased, he might be kind of cute.  Her smile turned into a smaller expression as her attention was turned toward the teacher, who began the class then.

“So, to make this easy on you guys you’re going to be paired up for class assignments. Not a big group one. Just evaluation worksheets and a paper to turn in to me. Even your final will be done with your partner. So whoever is sitting beside you is now your buddy,” the teacher called out. “Take a few minutes to get to know them, then we will go over things.”

It was enough to make Ulquiorra groan. He was stuck with this chick again. He picked up his phone and texted. Nel, telling her that he hated his classes and wanted to just drop out. The text that he got back was just, “Hahaha!”

He turned and looked at the female sitting beside him, staring at her.

A half smile appeared on the woman’s face before her head slowly swiveled toward Ulquiorra.  “Howdy, partner,” she said in a fake Texas accent, tipping up an imaginary hat.

There was something about her smile that struck him as oddly familiar. Had she smiled at him in English? That was going to bother him until he figured it out. “Well, there’s no reason to participate in this activity. We have each other’s contact info already.”

“Perhaps, however, we could save ourselves a bit of time and get some work done.  Did you read the English syllabus? We have to pick a Shakespeare comedy to write a paper on first.  Do you have any that you’ve read and/or liked? For me, it’s between Much Ado About Nothing and Twelfth Knight.”  Her smile had dropped at his attempt to dismiss her and she took on a businesslike vibe.

Her voice was irritating in his ears. “What is your major?” He asked. Ulquiorra wanted to know so he could write her off if she was a flaky art type.

“Music performance.  What’s yours?”

Now he looked uncomfortable. “Uh, I don’t really have one. I’m waffling between cytology and music production. Cytology will most likely win because I don’t like people.” Ulquiorra hoped with the stare and his words she would get the hint.

“Ha!  Nice. I can appreciate a dude with varied interests.  Anyway, I might have practice this weekend and I might not; I don’t know about you but I’d rather have this first weekend to just figure my way around this place, so maybe we can start working on our assignments in earnest next week?”

“I have to record something this weekend, so I am busy,” he replied. “Honestly our stuff can be conducted over emails.”

She sighed.  She really didn’t work well over emails; she got too distracted by other online pursuits.  She didn’t want an argument right now though and it looked like the teacher was going to call attention back to herself soon.  “Fine, we’ll see how it goes,” Orihime said, disappointment apparent as she placed her chin in her hand and moved her eyes up front.

The only reason he had suggested this was because of Nel. Ulquiorra bit his lip then mumbled, “I’ve got a crazy best friend and she kind of gets territorial about me. I don’t want to make her crazy, that’s why I said that.”

Orihime looked back at him with furrowed brows and then raised them.  “What is it with guys and crazy female “best friends”? I don’t know anything about your situation but I know another guy who describes something similar.  He is delusional. That girl stopped being his friend the minute they crossed the line. Probably even before that. Oh well. I’m sure that’s not the case for you,” she backpedaled and swallowed, realizing she was sticking her nose where it didn’t belong.  “Anyway, sometimes the answer to overbearing friends and what-have-yous is neutral third-party locations. There is no reason to do any of our work on campus. We can go to a coffee shop or something, _if_ we need to do in-person work,” she offered by way of compromise. 

A low sigh left him. Ulquiorra realized he just pissed her off for some reason. “Did the guy you know come up with a solution? I mean Nel is okay when no other females are around.”

Orihime pursed her lips and took a deep breath through her nostrils, nodding at him slowly as he spoke.  She felt kind of sorry for this guy. He sounded just like Obscuras. Totally in denial. Totally not wanting to hurt these girls they had in their lives but doing it anyway.  She decided to be honest. “No, he’s still stringing her along, but he doesn’t really realize he’s doing it; he just wants things to go back to how they were. I don’t have the heart to tell him that it’s never going to happen. But, as I said, this “Nel” is probably nothing like my other friend’s non-girlfriend,” she sighed.  She was not helping. “I mean, I don’t think you’d do that, I don’t even know you. All I know is that personally, I have never been friends with a guy and then was able to keep the friendship going after a certain line was crossed unless I wasn’t really that interested in the first place.”

Ulquiorra gave a small snort and let the corner of his mouth turn up. He shook his head. “Nel considers herself my girlfriend but I don’t. I’ve told her this but she keeps it up. Anyway, I’m just saving you a bunch of headaches.”

Orihime smiled then, a relieved feeling smoothing out her features.  “Well, good luck with that. I don’t envy your situation,” she said kindly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.  

Once again the green-eyed male was struck by the fact that he felt like he had seen that smile before. He almost said something but his phone buzzed. It was probably more Instagram notifications. “Thanks,” he said before drawing his attention back to the teacher.


	3. Deja Vu

Orihime was still on the lookout for a pianist.  After she was done with classes on Friday she went back to the music department and hit the practice rooms.  It was difficult to practice without an accompanist; it felt like she was only doing half of the song. She sighed, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to afford to pay an accompanist to play with her everytime she practiced anyway. She had been spoiled by her Aunt Claire accompanying her every time she practiced at home. The best she could hope for here was that she could get someone to play with her once or twice a week for a half an hour or something.

She came out of the practice rooms ninety minutes later and ran into a girl who was in chamber choir with her.  “Hey, did you hear about Tier’s party?”

“What?”  Orihime asked the girl with curly, mouse-brown, shoulder length hair and too much makeup.  Her name was Michelle, wasn’t it? She didn’t remember exactly.

“Yeah, you know, Tier Harribel, the senior soprano.  She lives off campus with her boyfriend and some other department people. There’s a party at her house on Saturday.  There’s going to be some band playing in the basement. You should come!” the girl said.

“Oh, okay,” Orihime said.  She didn’t know a lot of people yet and she had a hard time breaking the ice with people if too much time had passed after initial meetings.  She recognized this party as her opportunity to meet people before she got cold feet. “Do you want to go together?”

The girl agreed and they exchanged contact information.  It turned out they were in neighboring dorms so it would be easy to meet up and get ready to go together.  Orihime smiled and said goodbye before turning to leave and meet Tatsuki to go to the gym.

She was stopped by another person in her chamber choir.

“Hey, you’re in choir with me,” the tall freshman with black hair and rectangular rimless glasses said.

“Oh, yeah.  Hi,” Orihime said, somewhat taken aback.  The way this guy had addressed her sounded almost like a accusation.

“Uryu Ishida.  You’re Claire Cartwright’s niece.”

Orihime sighed, her shoulders raising and falling as her eyes dropped to her feet.  “Yep.”

“Orihime Inoue.  I read about you in Classical World.  Anyway, are you going to Tier’s party?”

Her head looked up.  “Yes, are you?”

The thin man nodded.  “See you there,” he said, before walking off quickly.

“What a weirdo,” Orihime said quietly before booking out of the building.

 

***

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Ugh, can the year be over?_

_Had the second class where_

_I’m paired with someone_

_Ughhhh_

_I’m working on FGI tonight._

 

Ulquiorra sent the messages and then tuned his guitar. He had managed to avoid Nel for the rest of the day. She had been texting him constantly though. After speech, he went to the university’s library to look up the two titles his partner had suggested for their English project. He did not like Shakespeare. It was nothing but constant dick jokes and trolling. The dead guy’s writing wasn’t even that good.

The comments on Hallelujah had slowed down but people were still sending him DMs and reactions to it. 

Hopefully, his fan base would calm the fuck down soon.

It was hard to do just one part for this song so Ulquiorra had spent the early part of the afternoon recording the bass line on his keyboard while this evening he would be singing and playing the guitar line. He wanted to make sure everything was perfect since this was for Vega.

He pushed the button to record on his camera, making sure the bottom of his face and below were visible. “So what I posted on Instagram this past week was a preview and a present for Vega. This is the entire thing, I hope you enjoy it Veggs, happy birthday. I hope you had some cake and ice cream and a mountain of presents.” Ulquiorra laughed then smiled.

He might edit that all out. With a deep breath, he began to sing Vega’s request. He got through the song the first time and played it back, his headphones secured over his ears. It didn’t sound half-bad but it was nowhere near perfect.

After tweaking the sound and adding the bass track, Ulquiorra finished rendering the video just as a tap on the door sounded. That had to be Nel.

Walking over to the door, he unlocked and then opened it seeing his teal-haired friend. “Sup Nel?” 

“Drop the bullshit and let me in, asshole.” 

So Ulquiorra did. He always had deferred to her when it came to everything but sex. There was something about Nel’s personality that screamed she would kick his ass and make him enjoy it. It was easier to be submissive to her than start fights.

He was glad he had put away his music equipment because Nel had flopped down on his bed. She patted the space beside her. The words that Orihime Inoue said came back to haunt him. “Nel,” he started but she stopped him.

“Shhhh,” she said pulling him onto the bed. “I knew she was female. It’s fine.”

“What?”

“Vega. I saw the video she posted. I left comments. She’s so desperate.” Nel smiled and placed her head on Ulquiorra’s chest. “She has a really good voice. It makes me wonder if she’s a professional singer.”

Ulquiorra felt that flash of irritation that appeared ever since he and Nel got physical. He just wanted things to go back to normal after crossing that line. “Nel,” he warned as he felt her hand worm under his track pants. “I have reading to do. Entire books and plays to get through.”

She huffed and flopped on her back. “I’ve barely seen you at all this week. I’m surrounded by people who don’t think digital art is an actual thing and I hate most of my classes.”

“I’m sorry?” Ulquiorra offered. He sat up as he heard his laptop chime. The video was done doing its thing. “If I give you an hour, will you let me work after that?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

 

***

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Me too.  What is it with college and group work?_

_I suppose it means fewer assignments for professors to grade :/_

_I’m super excited for FGI!!!_

_Anyway, TGIF and congratulations for one week of school in the bank._

_Any big plans this weekend?_

 

***

 

“Do you want to go to a party with me?”

Orihime’s roommate perked her head of unruly black hair up, raising up on her elbow on her bunk.  “What kind of party?”

“A house party.  There’s gonna be live music.  It’s going to be a lot of music department people there,” Orihime said hopefully. She did not want to go with just herself and that Michelle girl.  She seemed untrustworthy.

Tatsuki flopped back into her bed.  “No thanks, Hime. I like you and all, but music and theatre arts majors have a tendency to be… How do I put this nicely… _Dramatic._ And honestly, kind of dorky.  Present company excluded, obviously.”

Orihime sighed and leaned back into her chair.  She found a save point in the game she was playing -Final Fantasy VII- and decided to check her emails.

She logged in to see that she had comment notifications for her YouTube video, which was odd, because she had it set to be unlisted: only people who knew her username or had the link would be able to find it.  Maybe Obscuras rewatched it?

She smiled at the thought and logged onto YouTube.  Before she had a chance to comment she saw that he had posted a new video.  She plugged in her headphones and listened.

“Oh my god!” she squealed, covering her mouth with her fingertips.

“What is it?” Tatsuki asked, disturbed by her outburst.

“Listen to this.  Listen to this!” Orihime unplugged her headphones and turned up the speakers on her laptop.  “My username is Vega.Strife00. I’ve been kind of talking to this YouTube guy for a couple of years and he has gotten really popular and he just dedicated a video to me!  Eeeeee!” she squealed again, unable to contain her excitement as she started the video over from the beginning.

After it was over, Tatsuki looked at her roommate with raised eyebrows.  “What kind of ‘talking’ have you been doing, _Vega?_ ” she asked in a suggestive voice.  Orihime rolled her eyes. The short-haired woman chuckled. “He’s good.”

“He’s better than good.  I’ve got to thank him.”

 

**Vega.strife00 wrote at 7:01 p.m.:**

_Thank you!  It sounded awesome! This is the best birthday present XD <3 love it._

 

Orihime posted the comment and then went to go check her own video for comments.  There were five, and none were from _ObscurasIV_. She had never interacted with this _Gamuza3_ before, but she had seen the generic comments he or she had left on _ObscurasIV’s_ videos before; she recognized the username.

**Gamuza3 wrote at 12:01 a.m.:**

_Omg._

 

**Gamuza3 wrote at 12:18 a.m.:**

_Do you realize how desperate you sound?_

 

**Gamuza3 wrote at 1:16 a.m.:**

_Homewrecker_.

 

**Gamuza3 wrote at 9:51 a.m.:**

_He has a girlfriend, you know_

 

**Gamuza3 wrote at 10:47 a.m.:**

_Ugh, your voice is irritating._

 

Ouch.  Orihime had faced criticism on her performances before.  She had been the object of a jilted lover’s ire before too, but for some reason, this felt worse.  This _Gamuza3_ character had an ax to grind and was making this personal. Not only that, she or he was acting very possessive of _ObscurasIV_.  She widened her eyes and took a deep breath. It sounded like maybe his “best friend” had been tracking their correspondence. It felt like a violation.

Still, it wasn’t her place to have an opinion on his and his best friend’s relationship, even if she did have a strong one. She decided to just let him know what was going on and let him deal with it as he liked.  It’s what she would want if the tables were turned. She took a screenshot of the messages and sent the picture to him on Instagram.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Hey, heads up, I didn’t list my video_

_So I don’t know how this person found it,_

_But just so you know_

 

Orihime made herself a cup of herbal tea and decided that maybe what she needed was to focus on real-life connections.  She searched through a pile of papers on her desk until she found Ulquiorra’s contact information. She considered sending a text but remembered what he said about his non-girlfriend.  The thought made her angry; it was too similar to what _ObscurasIV_ was going through, not that he was blameless in the situation. Both of them were allowing these women to pressure them into something they didn’t want to do, but neither of them had the guts to put their foot down and end the situation.  Both men needed to break out of this path of least resistance they were on.

 She couldn’t really do anything to help Obscuras in real life, but she could try to help Ulquiorra.  She composed an email to the Gmail account he had provided:

 

_Hi Ulquiorra, it’s Orihime._

_I am guessing you are not much of a party person, but in case you are, there’s going to be a house party tomorrow night hosted by someone in my department, $10 cups.  If you want to come, let me know and I’ll text you the address. Open invitation, feel free to bring friends. If you don’t feel like it, see you in class on Monday!_

_-Hime_

 

***

 

He stared at Nel who was naked under the blankets on his bed. Ulquiorra was angry. “You got into my Instagram account and you read—“

“What? I’m the one you’re kissing and fondling. It’s my right.”

“No. No. _No_. You sound like you’re fucking crazy Nel!”

The teal haired woman crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. “You told her all about me and how we’re best friends. I just told her the truth,” she stated.

“You’re a fucking masochistic bitch. I told you that time in the car I didn’t want you like that! You keep pressing the issue and I go along with it.” Ulquiorra folded his arms over his chest, mimicking Nel’s stance except he was sitting in his desk chair. “Nel, she is my friend. That’s all Vega is.”

She had the audacity to scoff at his words. “I don’t care about your side chicks.”

Ulquiorra’s mouth dropped open. “The only fucking side chicks I have are your different personalities!”

“Whatever.”

“Nel, Vega’s input is important to me. Why can’t I have friends other than you?” Ulquiorra asked. He knew he shouldn’t have done anything with her tonight. It was a hassle and he didn’t even enjoy it. “Get dressed.  I have reading to do and you promised to let me work after—after—after—“ he couldn’t even say it.

When she was gone he turned back to his laptop.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Gamuza3 is the Best Friend._

_I am sorry._

_She’s jealous of you._

_Been that way since you commented the first time._

 

Ulquiorra knew that he had to explain to her. It wasn’t that he wanted to. It was more a question of would she listen to him? How much damage had Nel done with those five comments?

 

_You know the situation or at least parts of it_

_I’m not trying to string her along_

_She just won’t quit._

_I’m not confrontational_

_I apologize for her, Veggs._

 

Then he opened his email to see that he got a message from his class partner.

 

_\- Thanks but I’m busy reading these two works you suggested and recording stuff. You’re right, not much of a partier. Don’t get too smashed._

_Cifer_

 

Before he sent the email he deleted the links to his Instagram, YouTube and his signature that declared he was Obscuras IV. He really needed to use his official email for music business and just delete everything that pertained to it from this email address. He also had several emails from his mother but Ulquiorra would deal with those later.

 

***

 

Orihime had been watching something on Netflix when a notification came up that she had an email from Ulquiorra.  She looked at it and decided to take a break and respond.

 

\- _LOL. I figured.  Don’t worry, I don’t drink much.  You can watch the Kenneth Branagh adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing on Amazon for cheap.  I really like that movie and really, Shakespeare was written to be watched, not read. See you on Monday._

_Hime_

 

She decided to check Instagram.  Her heart fell into her stomach. It was what she was afraid of.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Listen, I don’t want to come between you and her…_

 

She paused, feeling like she wanted to get sick.  Why did this bother her so much? The more she thought about it, the angrier she became.  Maybe he needed someone to tell it to him straight.

 

_I was going to tell you that if you wanted I would back off,_

_but honestly, I don’t think I’m your problem._

_If what you say is true, then you two are not good for each other.  It’s unhealthy._

_I know it’s none of my business, but I’ve listened to your side of this for a long time_

_And now that I’ve had a taste of her take on it I think I can state with confidence that_

_You are definitely stringing her along, whether you think so or not._

_She thinks you belong to her.  If you don’t contradict that, you are tacitly agreeing._

_I mean, think about your future._

_Do you want to end up married to her with a couple of kids in a few years?_

_If so, great! Congratulations!_

_If not, think again, because that is the path you are on if you keep letting her dictate to you._

_I’ll still be here if you need me._

 

She was going to leave it like that, but she felt kind of like it read like she was angry at him.  She really wasn’t. She was angry at the situation and that she was being pulled into a one-sided lover’s quarrel.  She decided she needed to clarify her position.

 

_And I’m sorry for my tone._

_I’m not angry with you._

_I just feel like someone needs to tell it to you straight._

_But honestly, she pissed me off.  My voice is not irritating! :(_

_I’m *not* desperate.  We are friends, right?_

_I think so, at least in a virtual sense, right?_

_God, I hate this.  I hate feeling like I did something wrong._

_Especially when I know I have nothing to do with it._

 

Orihime felt like shit.  She cared about him. That’s why it bothered her so much.  That’s why even though she wanted to wash her hands of the situation, she couldn’t.  She closed her laptop and turned her phone to silent. She didn’t want to deal with this anymore tonight.  She crawled into bed and fell asleep humming “You’ve Got A Friend” to herself.

 

***

 

The next morning he woke to more comments, DMs and emails. Of course, the song he uploaded was popular at one point in time so it was natural that people liked it. They also did not like it, stating that he did the song injustice because it didn’t have that signature Gorillaz sound to it.

Ulquiorra made himself a cup of tea and blearily sat down at his laptop rubbing his eyes. He had to wade his way through pornbots, DMs that offered him sex and one-offs, and scams. He finally got to Vega’s messages. His stomach hit the floor.

Dammit.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Look, the moment you commented she had a problem._

_We’ve been friends for a long time, like 14 years._

_Shit happened. I’ve told you vague details._

_I used to think I would end up with her but I’m not interested in her like that._

_Idk if that makes sense but… nm_

_We are friends in the virtual sense._

_I mean one of these days it might be nice to meet but I don’t see it in the cards atm._

_I’m sorry._

_Gamuza seems to drag people along whether they want to be on the ride or not._

_This isn’t your fault; it’s mine for just going along with it._

 

Ulquiorra looked at the screen and wished for an immediate response. When he didn’t see the three dots, he switched tabs to his email. His partner had emailed him back. He could deal with this.

 

_The only movie I can tolerate him in is Chamber of Secrets and that’s only bc Alan Rickman puts him on his ass. Honestly, MAAN is okay as far as Shakes goes but it’s still dick jokes and twaddle._

_See you Monday._

_Ulquiorra_

 

He sat there and sipped his green tea as he worked through things on social media and then realized he hadn’t removed the stuff at the bottom of the second email. Eh, it probably wasn’t worth getting worked up over. His partner probably didn’t know what modern music was.

Since he had no classes on Saturday he decided to go to the campus gym and run for a bit. There was a pool that people could use too but Ulquiorra didn’t feel like swimming today. He finished his tea and got dressed, walking out of the dorm room to see Nel walking towards him.

He waited for her.

“Done throwing a fit?” She asked.

“Back at you,” Ulquiorra replied. “Workout?”

“It’s Saturday, of course. Run and then squats?” Nel asked with a grin on her face.

 

***

 

Orihime woke up and decided she still wasn’t up to dealing with Obscuras.  She wanted to burn off her excess icky energy and go to the gym early-ish. There was no barre class on Saturday so she decided to just go and see what was happening. She opened her drawer; she didn’t want to wear a leotard if she wasn’t going to do barre -even she realized it would look ridiculous - so she just put on some yoga pants and a sports bra with an oversized tank top.  That should work for whatever class or just running or whatever. She threw a track jacket on over it and made her way to the gym.

In the end, she couldn’t wait to check Instagram and pulled her phone out on the way.  Sure enough, there was a reply. As she read it, her lips curled. He really had his head up his ass about this “best friend”.  She blew out a few breaths. It was _not_ her business.  She repeated that mantra to herself all the way to the gym.  When she got there, she sat on a bench in the locker room after hanging up her jacket and tapped out a reply.

 

**Vega.strife00**

_Listen, I understand that it’s complicated between you and her._

_I don’t want to be a thorn in your side._

_No more song responses - I don’t want her bitching at me or you for it._

_I’ll delete the video and her comments._

_I don’t think you really understood what I was trying to tell you yesterday, though._

_I don’t know if you are ready to hear it._

_But like I said, it’s really none of my business.  I just worry about you, I guess._

_Anyway, if you ever want a girl’s perspective, HMU._

_-Vega_

 

She felt better after it was sent.  She was still irritated that he seemed to totally be blind to the fact that his situation with this woman was a product of his own laziness or unwillingness to stand up for himself.  She didn’t have a lot of hope that he would ever get out of it. It made her sad to think about.

She shook her head.  She needed to stop thinking about it.  Right. A run. A run should help. She made sure her shoes were tied tight and went to the indoor track.

 

***

 

Ulquiorra stared at his phone with displeasure. His mouth pulled into a thin line as he waited for the barista to hand over his cappuccino. On their run, they found the campus coffee house with freshly ground beans and homemade goodies. Just like his dad’s shop.

It wasn’t enough to lift his spirit though. He glanced at Nel who was talking to some big guy with blue hair. She was clearly flirting with the guy and it didn’t bother him that much. Maybe Nel would go out and get some dick from this guy and she would leave him alone.

He really needed to grow a backbone concerning the teal haired female.

While she was preoccupied and his drink was taking forever, Ulquiorra tapped out a reply to Vega.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Don’t fucking delete the video. I want to download it first. Please._

_I know I’m not asking nicely but I do like your voice and the song was for me, right?_

_Tbh, I’m oblivious when it comes to relationships bc like I’ve said I’m not interested in anyone around me._

_Nelliel just likes to shove herself in my face where I can’t ignore her._

_I worry about you too. We are friends after all._

_I’ll delete FGI if you want_.

 

With that, the person making his coffee yelled out his and Nel’s name. All Ulquiorra had to do was collect them and bring them over to her.

“Ulq, this is Grimm. Grimm this is my friend, the singer I was telling you about,” Nel said excitedly almost bouncing up and down.

“Hey,” was all the guy with blue hair said.

Ulquiorra nodded at him. “Ready to finish our run?” He asked Nel. She nodded at him and the two bid the other male farewell. They couldn’t run with hot paper cups in their hands so they walked.

“Ulquiorra, I’m sorry. I know I overstepped a boundary,” Nel said blowing on her chai latte. “You’ve been my friend forever. Almost fifteen years.”

The male’s dark hair bobbed up and down. At least she was apologizing. However, he wasn’t going to make it easy for her. “Okay and?”

Nel glanced at him. “I want a chance… another chance.”

“Meaning?”

“Me and you facing the world?” Nel offered. “No more Vega.”

At the mention of the other female’s screen name, his mouth turned down at the corners. Ulquiorra took a drink of his cappuccino, not even flinching at how it burned his tongue. “Don’t think you have to worry about Vega. Your comments worked. She doesn’t really want anything to do with me,” he said. “Nel, the only thing I can offer you are dates. I don’t want sex nor do I want to be in a relationship. You’ve been hearing this for the past how many years?”

“Maybe we can go back to that,” she said.

Maybe. Ulquiorra didn’t think she would be satisfied with that, however. They arrived at the gym and Ulquiorra stopped her from going into the building. He threw his half-finished coffee into the trash and turned the female toward him. He had a feeling she had made other plans depending on his answer.

“Nel, I’m not asking you to wait for me. I don’t know how much time I’m gonna need.”

She smiled at him. “Just tell me when,” she said before giving him a kiss. When she stepped back from him, she waved her hand. “Remember squats.”

“You’re not coming with me?”

“No, I have the opportunity to pick a digital artist’s brain.”

 

***

 

Orihime’s mouth pressed in a firm line as she watched her English/Speech partner kiss a woman with teal hair through the glass doors of the gym.  She made it one more lap before the man in question walked through those doors, alone. She slowed to a walk and wiped sweat off her brow before calling out, “Hey Ulquiorra!”

His head came up as he heard his name. He looked around to see the one chick who he was partnered up with waving at him. “Hey, uh, Orihime,” he said shifting uncomfortably. “You’re up early,” he joked.

“Pfft, I am usually up around this time.  What brings you to the gym today? I have a barre class during the week so I’m kind of at a loss for what to do today.”

“Squats.” He saw her somewhat confused look and decided to explain. “When I was in high school me and my friend would run a couple of miles and then do squats until we couldn’t do them any longer. Just got done with my run so now I’m here. Might start coming during the week but it depends on my class load.”

Orihime nodded.  “Well do you mind if I stand in for the squat challenge?  I will probably lose quickly but I usually rely on my roommate to help me navigate this place.”

He chuckled. “This is my first time in here but I know my way around a gym. I don’t care if you join me. Did you get my email?”

“No, I went to bed kind of early last night,” she said, falling into step beside him and redoing her ponytail.  “This morning I was not in the mood to deal with some online drama I got drawn into so I didn’t check. What did it say?" 

He nodded, knowing how that was. “Uh, I said the only movie I could stand Gilderoy Lockhart in was Chamber of Secrets and that’s only because Alan Rickman plants him on his ass. Then I went on to say that Shakespeare is nothing but dick jokes and twaddle.”

Orihime laughed and turned, gesturing toward his arm in excitement like she meant to grab it but not actually invading his space.  “You’re a Harry Potter fan too? Let me guess, Slytherin?”

He rubbed the side of his face and nodded. “As much as I like the aesthetics of Slytherin, I’m much more suited for Ravenclaw. I do like Harry Potter. It was my love for Rickman that drove me to watch them,” Ulquiorra said as they moved through the gym. “But if you want to do that paper on Much Ado About Nothing, we can. I read it.”

Orihime watched him explain his reasoning for liking Harry Potter with an appraising, side-eyed gaze.  “Hmmm, good. I like Much Ado About Nothing. Not nearly as much as I adore the late great Alan Rickman.  He was my celebrity crush until his untimely death,” she sighed. “What a loss. I mean, there isn’t anyone else who speaks like that.  Hnngh,” she had had an entire body shiver, starting from her head and ending in her hips, which she wiggled along with her little groan.

His brows raised then Ulquiorra scowled. Weird behavior for public. “He was great in Dogma. My dad’s boyfriend let me watch it and it was an instant love for the snarky bastard.”

“I liked him better in Die Hard, but I’m a sucker for a German accent.  But if we’re talking Kevin Smith films, CLERKS is king, don’t you think?”

“Nah, Mallrats or Clerks 2 is where I’m at.”

“Agree to disagree,” she said with a good-natured grin.  “Although I’d say Mallrats is a close second. Plus any movie that ends with a Weezer song is a winner in my book.”

“Ah, Weezer and the original start of the grungy emo persona. Where would we be without Buddy Holly?” Ulquiorra said as he stopped in front of a clear space. He looked at the auburn-haired woman and raised an eyebrow. “You really want to do squats or walk around some more?”

“I’m good either way.  If we do squats I’ll have to walk them out for a while anyway.  Barre is more for core strength and balance, not pumping up your quads and glutes,” she said with a laugh.

“You’re one of those classically trained singers if you’re talking about core strength. There is no modern singer who cares about that stuff. At least that’s what I see.” Ulquiorra looked at her and motioned for her to keep walking. He didn’t think she needed to work on her thighs or butt from what it looked like.

He stopped for a second. Odd that he would think of that when he didn’t think of Nel in that light. What the hell was going on? Why did he feel like this? Why was he thinking like this? Ulquiorra felt comfortable with Orihime which was strange.

“Well, I can’t speak for any other singers, but you’re right about me.  I’m studying classical voice,” she said, twisting her mouth to the side a bit like she was ashamed of that.

He caught the fact that she wasn’t happy about this. “Hey you just have to get through college and then you can write rap songs,” Ulquiorra said with a tone of amusement.

A laugh seemed to leap out of her belly and her eyes landed on his.  She held his gaze for a long moment and then said, “Thanks. Maybe I will.  And don’t get me wrong, I love music and singing. I’m looking for a pianist right now, by the way, if you know any.  I have a jazz ensemble almost put together and then I’ll be ready for cocktail hours at wedding receptions and lounge acts at business functions.  It’s how I earn pocket money.” 

Ulquiorra felt that strange sense of deja vu again. “I can play the piano. I’m better at playing the guitar though. I’d offer my services but I do a lot of recording on the weekend.”

“Well, maybe…  I’m just thinking out loud here and I won’t hold you to it but I have also been looking for a cover band to join, but I’ve not found anything that strikes my fancy and I was thinking of trying to do some weekday coffee shop gigs, just me and a guitar, but despite my best efforts, my guitar skills have not come along.  I think my hands are too small. I can fake it on piano but I don’t feel comfortable on guitar. If you have any free time and I find a venue, would you consider playing with me? I mean, after you’ve heard me sing and decide I don’t suck, of course.”

“Shouldn’t you hear me play the guitar first before you decide you want me to sit there and suck? I could be absolutely horrible.” Ulquiorra held out his hand to her then grabbed her wrist. He studied her hand. “You’d be better suited for a violin or a ukulele.”

She smirked.  “I know, I’m petite.  I’m half Japanese. That’s my excuse, anyway,” she said, blushing and laughing.  “Anyway, I’m sure you’re decent if you’re recording songs, and I’m only being modest because it’s polite.  Nobody likes to hear a girl brag about her pipes.”

Ulquiorra would have refuted that statement but it seemed really inappropriate thing to say to her. “Uh, I don’t know if the music building is open today but I could sing for you today or play the piano if you’re interested. Just because I record songs doesn’t mean I am good.”

Her face lit up at the suggestion.  “Yeah, I have a practice room booked from noon to three.  Do you want to meet me there? Or we could get lunch first if you want to eat.  I was going to just grab a thing of hummus from the Comm but if you want to stop somewhere else I’m game.”

Ulquiorra rubbed his face again. ”Uh, I need to go shower and pick up my guitar but I can meet you there,” he offered.

Orihime squeezed her eyes shut in embarrassment.  She had been overeager. “Of course, yeah. I mean, I saw you saying goodbye to your girlfriend before you came in here, I’m sure she wouldn’t be cool with lunch anyway.  I am forgetful, don’t mind me. We can meet at the music department. You can just text me when you get there and I’ll meet you at the front door of the practice rooms.”

He narrowed his eyes at the female. “Girlfriend? What girlfriend? You mean the chick who kissed me?” He scrunched his face up. “That’s not my girlfriend. That’s Nel, the crazy best friend.” 

Orihime raised an eyebrow at him dubiously.  “Crazy, huh? I dunno, you didn’t seem to have a problem with it. If I was her I’d think I was your girlfriend--”  She stopped short. “Sorry, I’m projecting. Someone else I know is in a kind of fucked up situation… I’m sure yours is different.  Nevermind what I just said.”

“Yeah, well, you sound like a friend of mine so we’ll call it even,” he stated. Ulquiorra shook his head. Their time talking had been going so good too and she had to remind him of Vega. “Look, disregard the email. We talked about it so there’s really no reason to waste your time with it.”

“Noted,” she said, looking at the clock on the wall.  “What do you say we stretch and then disperse and regroup a little after twelve?”

“Sounds good but you’ve got to tell me if you think Die Hard is a Christmas movie while we do this.”

“Of course it is.  I like to think that Santa flies over Nakatomi Tower saying “Yippee Kai Yay” instead of “Ho Ho Ho”,’ she said, grinning at him.  There was something about this guy. Something familiar. He was really much easier to talk to than he had acted in class. She couldn’t help the way her eyes traveled over him, looking for something that might jog her memory. She had to have met him before that English class last Thursday.

“Okay, you’re worthy. Let’s stretch, Inoue.”

 

***

 

When she got back to the locker room, she toweled off and put her jacket back on, then checked her phone. _ObscurasIV_ had messaged her. She sat at the bench of the locker room and replied.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_I’m only going to say one thing about Nelliel and then I promise I’m done with the unsolicited advice._

_NO GIRL shoves her face into a guy’s face as much as you say she does if she doesn’t think she has a chance._

_You are probably sending her mixed signals._

_I won’t delete the video until you let me know you’ve downloaded it._

_Please don’t delete FGI.  It was a present and dude… It’s my internet fifteen minutes of fame, PLEASE DON’T TAKE THAT AWAY FROM ME, lmaooooo_

_Anyway, I’ve got someone IRL who is going through something similar to you._

_But I think it’s worse._

_He’s got this girl he thinks is his friend, but he is the only one who thinks so._

_Everyone else on planet earth thinks they are a couple._

_I mean, best friends don’t make out with each other in public; lovers do._

She stood and reread her message, then reread his, and continued.

 

_Oh, also, you don’t need to worry about me, everything is going alright at school, if a little dull._

_My crazy aunt is out of my hair.  No boys bothering me yet._

_Oh, except that creepy Professor Von Touchyfeely.  Ew._

_Luckily I don’t see him again until Tuesday, lol._

_TTYL -V_


	4. Vanity Day

He was feeling down after reading Vega’s messages. It was his own fault. She was right. He kept playing around with Nel. He did let her kiss him in front of the gym. He did tell her that he needed time.

But…

While he was with Orihime he kept having _those_ thoughts about his class partner; thoughts that he had never entertained with Nel. What made Orihime so special that she could kick him out of his mental rut?

He had the same kinds of thoughts about Vega. He knew that he didn’t like the idea of Vega being bothered by other guys. He didn’t like this Professor Touchy Mcfeely either. It was worrying.

Once he got back to his dorm room he took off his T-shirt and then posed with his phone case blocking the view of his face. Might as well give the fans some eye candy. He posted the picture on Instagram with the caption of a winking emoticon and a heart.

He threw the phone onto his bed and went to take a shower. His phone didn’t stop vibrating or buzzing as he got dressed or as he gathered his guitar and went to the Comm to get something to eat. A yogurt and a sandwich did it for him. Ulquiorra texted Nel to remind her to eat. Nel got so wrapped up in her art that she forgot.

It happened. Sometimes, the same thing happened to him. He knew if he was working on some project he would go hours focusing on it instead of taking care of himself. It had happened before.

He still had a few minutes so he slowly walked to the building where the music department was housed and scrolled through his social media.

 

***

 

Orihime took a shower as soon as she got back to her dorm and changed into her typical Saturday practice wear, black leggings and a wide-necked black sweatshirt that showed off the multiple silky black straps of her bralette on one shoulder or another.  It was a bit of a casual look for her so she went with black converse instead of her typical heeled boots.

She got down to the Fine Arts building a bit before noon after grabbing a protein bar and some carrot sticks; hummus was too garlicky and the practice rooms were close quarters, no need to fumigate the new guy, she thought.  She checked into her room and started to warm up, leaving her phone where she could see it so she wouldn’t miss when Ulquiorra texted her.

She was getting anxious and checked her phone after a few minutes.  No contact. She checked Instagram to see if _ObscurasIV_ had responded.  

He had not, but holy shit, he did something else.

Hole. E. Shit.

Orihime’s face turned nine shades of red as she gawked at her virtual friend’s body.  Then her phone buzzed in her hand. It startled her so much that she nearly dropped the device.  She looked at the text message; Ulquiorra was here. She decided to just call him.

He waited outside until his phone rang. Raising a straight black brow, he sighed but answered the call. “Sup? Are you on your way out?” He asked not bothering to greet the caller.

She giggled, still affected by the photo she had just been studying.  “Um, hehe, yeah, um, come on into the lobby, I’ll meet you at the stairs, okay?”

Ulquiorra was already pulling the doors of the building open. “Got it, see you in a few.” He hung up the call and continued to look at his phone screen.

Orihime came bounding down the stairs with bright pink cheeks and a goofy grin on her face.  “Thanks for coming!” She called out from halfway down the steps. “This way to the practice rooms.”

His green eyes glanced at Orihime before he shoved the phone into the pocket of his jeans. He nodded at her before he joined her. “Okay.  Just please, please do not leave me hanging when it comes time to do this project or whatever, deal?” He said to her as they went up the stairs.

She scoffed.  “Same to you, Buster.  I take my work seriously.  But it’s a deal,” she said, turning slightly to look back down at him; she was about five or six steps ahead. 

“Regular old Hermione, aren’t you?” He said letting one side of his mouth turn up. “When it comes to assignments I’m dead serious about them.”

“Good,” she replied.  “But I’m definitely post-makeover Hermione.  Pre-makeover Hermione was ratchet,” she said with a tsk.

“I guess I’m Ernie Macmillan then,” he muttered. “Overachieving git.” Ulquiorra gave a small laugh. “Do you have any requests for me to play for you?”

“Hmm.  Do you have a go-to?  A favorite that you gravitate toward?  I have some songs in mind that I’d like to try out with you but I think we should both get a feel for each other’s sounds first.”

His eye squinted on one side of his face as he thought about all the songs he had played over the months and years of recording songs and singing. “I’ve got a couple,” he said. “Uh, I could do a mashup of songs for you. Like the chorus or verses of songs I really like.”

“Ooh, yes, please,” she said, beaming at him before turning away to unlock the practice room that still held her personal belongings.  With her back toward him, and with the flat converse, she appeared especially short. She caught a glimpse of their height difference in the glass portion of the door and rolled her eyes.  She looked like a child.

“Something wrong?”

“I am a halfling compared to you; compared to most people.  It is embarrassing.”

Since the back of her head was to him he let himself fully smile. “I’m not that tall. Five-ten isn’t tall for a guy.”

“It’s eight inches taller than me!  Look at this,” she backed up so that she stood directly in front of him, her back millimeters from his front.  “You could easily use the top of my head as a chinrest,” she complained, pointing to their reflections and then stepping back to the door and opening it.

She was short. Maybe that was a good thing though. Ulquiorra shook his head, bothered by her closeness. He shook it off. He was here for an audition, not to think of a classmate as dating material. Wait a fucking minute… Dating material? No.

As soon as he was in the room, he set his guitar case against the wall. “I can do Since U Been Gone, Ziggy Stardust, uh, um, Halle—wait no I just sang that… pick two more.”

“Hmm, how about, and I am just choosing ones here that I think will transition well with those two, Hey Jude and Take Me Out by Franz Ferdinand, if you know those ones.”

His face scrunched up at the last two suggestions but it was her pick. “Okay, I might even throw a freebie in at the end.”

“Awesome.  Whenever you’re ready,”  she said, settling down on the piano bench and waiting.

Ulquiorra knelt down next to the guitar case and opened it. He took the acoustic guitar out and placed the strap over his shoulder and head. It was the one he used all the time for videos. The embroidery looked like the number 4 was patterned all over the strap.

“Huh,” Orihime said, almost inaudible.  That looked familiar. She wondered if it was a popular design, of maybe this guy was an ObscurasIV fan too.  Who knows. The guitar was similar, no, it looked the same. Weird.

“You okay?” Ulquiorra asked glancing at her with his brows furrowed. He didn’t want to be stuck in a tiny room with anyone who looked dazed or like they were spaced out. What if she was sick?

“Yeah, I’m fine, it’s just some mild deja vu.  Please,” she motioned to his guitar.

The green-eyed male nodded and did several warm-up scales before he launched into the chorus of the first song he ever uploaded to the video site. _“But since you’ve been gone. I can breathe for the time. I’m so moving on, yeah, yeah…”_

Orihime’s eyes slowly widened.  It couldn’t be. He sounded exactly like him.  Well, not exactly, the boy who sang Since U Been Gone over two years ago sounded more immature than this young man, but it was uncanny.  Orihime found herself leaning forward in her seat.

He noticed the look and decided to change songs. He was not all that comfortable with his rendition of a great Bowie song so Ulquiorra shifted his fingers across the strings into the bass line of _Feel Good Inc._ maybe that look was because she thought he sucked. “ _Windmill windmill for the land, turn forever hand in hand…_ ” he trailed off staring at the woman’s face. “What? Is it that bad?”

Orihime was unable to respond at first.  She didn’t know what to say. Maybe he didn’t want to be outed, but she was 99.9999999% sure that this guy was _ObscurasIV_.  His face began to fall as she deliberated, and she knew that was no good. She quickly shook her head. “No, no. That was, um, fucking amazing.  Pardon my French but you’re kind of blowing my mind right now.”

“Really?” He asked pushing against his face with the palm of his hand. “Well if you want totally mind blowing I can do that. I need the piano though. I’ve never tried to play _Hallelujah_ on a guitar before.”

Orihime stood and moved as quickly as she could toward the door, allowing him space to move and trying to hide the fact that her hands and knees were shaking.   She leaned against the barrier and asked, “Have you ever played a piano as nice as this one before? We’re in one of the Steinway rooms.” Her voice shook with the question.

After placing the guitar back in the case, he peered at her. She seemed fine a moment ago. “Um, no, I have a pretty nice baby grand at my Dad’s house. I have a good keyboard. They both do the job. My passion is my acoustic guitar and my electric one.” Ulquiorra settled himself at the ivory keys and gently touched them. This was big. The only person he had played Hallelujah for was his dad who had cried before the end of the song. He said it was the best song his son ever sang.

There was always room for improvement. His long pale fingers slowly pressed on the keys. “ _I heard there was a secret chord, that David played and it pleased the lord but you don’t really care for music do you?_ ”

By the time he had finished the first verse, she was convinced.  It was him. He was flawless still. She was in tears by the end of the second verse.  On the third verse, when his voice slightly broke during the phrase, “ _And it’s not a cry that you hear at night, it’s not somebody who's seen the light, it’s a cold and it’s a broken hallelujah_ ,”  she choked, pressing a hand against her mouth. She felt like she should not be there; like she was trespassing into his heart, that’s how intimate the performance felt.

Ulquiorra heard her and let the music fade. He sucked so bad that he made someone cry. “Sorry, I always mess that part up.”

Before he could say anything else, she took a step toward him and placed a hand on his shoulder.  “No, you’re doing everything right,” she whispered. “Please finish,” she gave his shoulder a soft pat and backed away.

He shook his head. “I—I’ve tortured you enough with my warbling voice. Let’s see what you can sing.” Ulquiorra didn’t feel comfortable singing anymore. The spot where she has touched on his shoulder felt like it was too hot. She had invaded his space.

“Oh, that’s just evil, Ulquiorra,” she said, wiping her eyes and swallowing.  “I need a drink of water and a minute and still my voice is going to sound thick.  You were right, you _really_ blew my mind.  I don’t think you should relegate yourself to being just an accompanist,  you’re too talented. But… let me show you what I can do, first.” She turned and took a bottle of water out of her bag and took a long drink.

He had to smirk at that. He knew what he was doing. “All that recording I do… I upload the videos to YouTube. It’s a fun thing for me. I don’t really have any hobbies but—I mean I have hobbies but I enjoy music a lot.”

“Love what you do, right?  I thought I had heard your voice before, I’ve seen, um, _some_ , of your videos.  Quick question, do you get a lot of Adsense revenue or was the adpocalypse as bad as everyone makes it out to be?”

He gave her a skeptical look. “I don’t monetize my videos?” Ulquiorra said it as a question because he really didn’t think he deserved to make money off other people’s work. He was unsure of himself. “You’ve seen my videos? Okay Hot Shot, what’s my YouTube name?”

“ _ObscurasIV_.  I _am_ a hot shot.” She laughed, trying to dispel some of the awkwardness that was growing in the small room.  “Just kidding I don’t know who I am or what I am doing here.”

He thought he knew where he’d seen a smile that brilliant. With a scowl, Ulquiorra pulled his phone out of his pocket and pulled up Instagram. He knew he had seen that smile before. He ignored all the other messages that kept flooding in before he got to Vega’s DM. He kept his eyes moving from her face to his phone. When he scrolled past the message he held the device up. It wasn’t exact. The hair color wasn’t right and the entire smile looked wrong on Orihime. “Okay, so you know who I am,” he stated, putting the phone back. “Can’t breathe a word of it to anyone.”

“Cross my heart and hope to die,” she said, signing an X over her heart.  “You’re not the only big name I know. My aunt was a famous soprano, that’s why I’m here.  Speaking of which, I think I’ll let you hear me now,” she said, approaching him again. “May I have the piano?”

“Of course,” he said. Ulquiorra moved away from the piano and returned to where his guitar case sat.

“Okay, I know classical music isn’t your forte, but it’s mine, unfortunately.  I’ll give you one of those songs and then maybe we can try something together?”

He had his back against the wall as he sat on the floor. “I—if you want but I think I’m horrible. Let’s hear those famous pipes.”

Orihime looked over her shoulder at him, red-faced and obviously uncomfortable.  “Okay, here goes nothing,” she said, starting to play the soft chords that introduced the song, “Silent Noon”.  After the third bar, her voice came in, controlled, mezzo forte, lush, and finished the phrase pianissimo, like a lullaby.  “ _Your hands lie open in the long, fresh grass. The finger points look through like rosy blooms. Your eyes smile peace…_ ”

Ulquiorra thought she had a really nice voice and closed his eyes, listening to her sing. He could feel the skin on his arm raise and a small shiver pass through him. Yeah, Orihime had a nice voice. One side of his mouth turned up as he heard her sing.

As she reached the last phrase, the high note, “ _the song-- the song of love_ ,” part, she got embarrassed.  She cut the final note a half beat short and chuckled self-consciously, but finished the piano part, then turned around and looked at Ulquiorra with a slight grimace. “So that sucked,” she said, grabbing a strand of hair and twisting it. “I’m a bit better when I don’t have to play piano.”

“It wasn’t bad. You gave me goosebumps,” he said. Ulquiorra let her see the content feeling on his face before he went back to his default passive stare. “I don’t think I’m the right accompanist for you. I mean I can play the guitar when you get your coffee shop cover thing going.”

“That would kind of be slumming it for you, though, wouldn’t it?  You’re already famous. I can’t even use my limited name value for those gigs.  I have to use a stage name or my aunt will find out and cut me off until I get back into line. But just for fun, could we try something?”

He decided she was totally and completely wrong. “I’m not famous. Some YouTube subscribers and Instagram followers do not make me famous. I’m just a normal guy. You sound like this friend I have. She’s great and sometimes she kicks me in the ass to try to make me see the light which hasn’t happened many times, but she’s awesome,” Ulquiorra said, shaking his head. “Forget it. What did you want to try?”

She smiled at him as he described Vega, not recognizing that he was talking about her.  Still, it made her happy to hear that he had people like that in his life. “Well, I have a song that I’ve been trying to get to sound good on the guitar but, as I’ve explained, I am hopeless with that instrument.  Do you know “ _All My Life_ ” by Foo Fighters?”

“Foo Fighters? I like them too!”

“Love them.  Well, I kind of feel like that is my spirit song these days, and I really really want to perform it.  Not in a classical way. Do you want to try to play and sing with me?”

He bit his lip. He’d never performed a duet with anyone before. He never even really sang for anyone besides family and Nel. He never played together with anyone either. “We can try it, that’s all I’m offering.”

She nodded and played a pulled out a tab sheet she had printed out that had the chords and lyrics on it, then played the key signature note on the piano and started singing the lyrics acapella in an intense, whispery tone, her posture somehow expanding and compressing at the same time while her eyes darkened and her head fell somewhat, her gaze moving between the floor and Ulquiorra, mostly on the floor.  She didn’t appear self-conscious. She was feeling the lyrics,

 

_“All my life I've been searching for something,_

_something never comes never leads to nothing,_

_nothing satisfies but I'm getting close,_

_closer to the prize at the end of the rope._

_All night long I dream of the day,_

_When it comes around and it's taken away,_

_Leaves me with the feeling that I feel the most,_

_Feel it come to life when I see your ghost.”_

 

She seemed to cue Ulquiorra with a raise of her eyebrows as she reached the end of that phrase and stopped singing, letting him take the next phrase.

Ulquiorra found the sheet music for the song on his phone. He was ready by the time she looked at him. It took him a moment just to stare at his partner before he realized what she wanted him to do. Sing. Not gawk. Right. So he opened his mouth, fingers moving over the strings of the guitar as he strummed the instrument.

 

_“And if I give it a twist_

_Something to hold when I lose my grip_

_Will I find something in there_

_To give me just what I need_

_Another reason to bleed…”_

 

He did just as Vega told him to do years ago. He phrased the lines differently, giving it his own spin on the song.

When the chorus came in she joined him, her usually bell-like voice taking on a growl as she made and sustained eye contact with him, encouraging him to rise to her level of intensity, which he did.

She brought her face closer to his, but still outside if what she would consider “spitting distance”, looking at him with an almost angry expression and beating on her chest along with the lyrics, then spinning back toward the piano and banging out a “da-dum, da da-dum” rhythm in the low keys, rolling her chin along with the driving beat of the song.

Ulquiorra didn’t know what just happened but if she had gotten any closer, he might have done something incredibly stupid and embarrassing. There was no way. None. He only knew this chick for a few days, there was no way he was falling for her. It felt like he knew her longer than that though. He shook himself out of his thoughts and continued to play the song, glancing down at his phone from time to time.

As the song continued Orihime let go of any remaining self-consciousness and got into it as much as the small space allowed, shaking her hair as her head bobbed up and down as she scream-sung the repeating chorus _, “Done, Done, and I’m onto the next one_ ,” until the end of the song, when she seemed to suddenly collect herself with a shaky inhale, then looked at Ulquiorra with a blank expression for exactly three seconds.  Then a soft smile slowly blossomed over her teeth, lips parting just slightly. In a breathless voice, she said, “That was awesome.”

He gave her a half-smile. “It was. You’ve got a good range,” Ulquiorra said. He felt the phone buzz against his foot. More notifications. He picked it up, holding one finger up, telling Orihime to wait. It wasn’t social media notifications. It was his mom. “Fuck. Okay, I’ve got to run. I’ve been ignoring one parent and she wants to talk. I’ll see you Monday, right?”

“Yeah, I’ll be there, bye…” she trailed off as he ran out of the room.  Damn. She had been having fun. She didn’t want it to end. Oh well, maybe she was the only one.

Then reality hit.  Holy shit. Holy shit.  Holy shit! Her English and Speech partner was _ObscurasIV_!   Her brain threatened to shut down as she sat at the piano bench to consider this information, gripping her knees painfully.  She had just done a duet with him! They had just jammed out together! She took her phone out and brought up Instagram, half tempted to thank him for today.

Then she saw it again.

Fuck.

There he was, half-naked and looking gorgeous.  With over twelve thousand likes and hundreds of comments.  She had always had a little crush on him but it was never physical; she had never seen his face before his smile selfie a couple of days ago.

Fuck.

He had some bitchy quasi-girlfriend.  She was gorgeous, too. Tall, long teal hair, smile that lit up the world.  Whether or not he was committed to her may or may not be in question but he definitely was _not_ available.  

Wait a second, what difference did that make?  She wasn’t looking at him as boyfriend material, just as a musical partner, right?

Lies.  She was attracted to him.  That was irrefutable. But whatever, she thought.  She was attracted to a lot of people.

But she didn’t care about a lot of people the same way she cared for _Obscuras_ \--No.  Ulquiorra. Ulquiorra Cifer. He was a real person with a real name and a real smile and really gorgeous green eyes…

Fuck.

Fuckity-fuck fuck fuck.

Maybe she just needed to get laid.  She had that party tonight. Maybe she could get buzzed, dance, and make out with some hot bassist.  Maybe that would cool her jets. Right. She checked the time on her phone, once again subjecting herself to the image of _Obs_ \-- Ulquiorra’s torso.  

She had never commented on it.  Not that she would as Orihime, but his friend, _Vega.Strife00_ , would be remiss if she didn’t have anything to say about it.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_You should come with a warning._

_That is too much hotness to have splashed in your face without time to mentally prepare_

_What brought that on?  LOL._

_I’m not complaining, though._

_-Vega_

 

Ulquiorra had just pushed through the doors of the music building when he got her message. He almost laughed at the response.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Oh, come on. I’m allowed to have a vanity day once in a while._

_I’m not hot. Just like I’m not famous, to quote my class partner. She thinks I’m famous._

_She’s pretty awesome btw. She sings. Imagine that. She knows who I am though._

_Dunno if that’s a good thing or not._

_I think I kinda like her. Gamz is gonna have a fit. Oh well._

_The torso pic was brought on by the fact that you’re right._

_I’m a douche and leading Gamz on and I wanted some ego stroking. I got it._

_You are complaining._

 

When he got back to his dorm, Ulquiorra put his guitar back in it’s spot and then contemplated calling his mom or just letting her text and voicemails go unanswered. He decided to do just that and then picked up the borrowed works of Shakespeare.

 

***

Orihime got the notification that he had responded as she was closing up the practice room.  She read it as she walked; she had promised that Michelle girl that she would meet her to get ready. 

A vanity day, huh?  Well, turnabout is fair play.  

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Vanity, eh?  Ego stroking?  Alright hot shot._

_Your body looks cut.  Your voice is awesome.  Your musicianship makes me shiver._

_Also, refer to my previous comment about your smile._

_Well, if we’re having a vanity day, how about this?_

 

She had a folder on her phone called “Bad Habit.”  It was full of mostly faceless pictures of herself trying on the various pieces of lingerie she bought.  She picked one that wasn’t X-rated. It had her lips in it, unsmiling and pouty, and a shot of her body from ribs to nose in a short, dark red bustier with lace edging.  It was an expensive one, not a trashy one. It was one she had worn out in public for performances that she layered with a jacket. It wasn’t scandalous. Much. She added one more line.

 

_Good luck with Nel and your classmate._

 

Come to think of it, maybe she would wear that bustier to the party tonight.

 

***

 

Holy fucking shit. HOLY FUCKING SHIT.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Veggs, you can’t do that to me._

_Fuck._

_Fuck._

_I’m almost tempted to ask for a full body pic but you know… anon._

_Maybe a face pic… No, don’t mind me._

_I mean it was slightly weird that my classmate knew who I was._

_I’m always afraid of fangirls. That’s why I dont show my face._

_Fuck._

_:|_

 

Ulquiorra had to take a deep breath before he could look at the image again. Vega was definitely a woman. Nel had been right. She had been one hundred percent right. Thanks to the heavens above he hadn’t taken her up on that bet. He decided to up the stakes a bit and took a picture of his face from the middle of his nose and up. His gaze went to the side as he snapped the photo and sent it to her.

 

_Thanks for the ego stroking._

 

Orihime got his response just as that Michelle girl showed up to get ready.  She showed Michelle where her mirror and stuff was and then turned away. Damn.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_You make it easy._

_Are you saying I’m not a fangirl?_

 

She took a picture of the eye she had just finished making up.  Just the eye and the eyebrow, slightly arched in a questioning expression.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_No. I don’t dedicate songs to fangirls._

_I only do that for friends._

_You’ve been a friend for a couple years now._

 

He knew this whole faceless thing would eventually come to an end. He had to put himself out there. Ulquiorra lay back on his bed, head propped on the pillow. He let his black hair fan out over the cushion’s surface. He took several pics, trying to get the best angle of his face. Then he sent one of him blushing, staring intently at the camera.

 

_Fangirls don’t do this to me._

 

Orihime saw the pic and saved it to her library.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_You are adorable._

_I’m ded._

 

She was half tempted to send a return pic, but what then?  He’d know that she was Vega. Why hadn’t she come clean in the practice room?  She decided to test the waters.

 

_If I knew you IRL, would you talk to me?_

_It’s probably too complicated, isn’t it?_

 

If he knew Vega in real life would he talk to her? She had to be kidding. Complicated or not, he would talk to her. He’d push Nel out of a moving train to talk to Vega.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Depends, if you’re wearing things like in that pic then screw talking._

_I might not have brain function._

_OFC I WOULD TALK TO YOU._

_We’re miles away from each other so…_

_It’s nice to imagine what kind of friendship we would have._

 

Orihime read his message and had a mixed reaction.  She was glad he wanted to talk to her. She was glad that he seemed to be attracted to her.  He seemed to be attracted to her as both Vega and Orihime. That was good, right? Why did it feel like a tragedy waiting to happen?

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_You never know how far apart we are.  I might be across the continent or in the same town._

_Regardless, it’s simpler this way. You’ve got Nel and your classmate, right?_

_IDK.  It’s all hypothetical so I shouldn’t worry about it._

_I imagine we would … I dunno.  I imagine we wouldn’t be friends for long._

Yeah, it was kind of a vague message.  She thought his interpretation would be more revealing than a straight answer though. 

 

A sigh left him. She was right. He had to sort out this mess with Nel and Orihime before he even thought about Vega in that light. Wait a minute.

Wait a damn minute.

Why was there a mess with Orihime and Nel? He wasn’t with Nel. He just met his partner. He’d known Vega for a couple of years.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Hypothetical or not, it’s nice to think about meeting you one of these days._

_Why do you think we wouldn’t be friends for long?_

_Afraid of me?_

 

Hmmmm, honesty or not?

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Not afraid of you.  I think it wouldn’t be just friends, tho._

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Oh. You mean…_

_OH._

_I’m not saying no or that it wouldn’t happen but…_

_I’ve never had a girlfriend. Never been in anything serious._

_Why the hell am I telling you this? You know all of this._

 

Ulquiorra pressed his palm into the side of his face and then rolled over onto his stomach. He was a loser. A complete and total loser.

 

_Sorry. I have a knack for making shit awkward._

 

She was kind of relieved by this.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Glad I’m not the only one who makes things awkward._

_Seriously, don’t worry about it._

_We can just put this all down to “Vanity Day” and leave it at that._

_LOL._

 

The green-eyed singer stared at his phone. It might be better to just sweep this all under the rug rather than try to make anything of it. Vega was clearly trying to blow him off or maybe let him down gently. Ulquiorra wasn’t really sure what the hell was going on. Had they crossed a line?

 

**ObscurasIV**

_You can have a vanity day whenever you want. I’m not going to turn down pics._

_I know a typical male._

_I am only 18 after all._

_Maybe send another one for my birthday?_

 

With that, he closed the app and went back to reading the Shakespeare comedy.

 

She got his response as she was finishing getting ready and responded.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_You are sweet._

_You are anything but typical, trust me._

_All you have to do is ask.  I’ll make sure I save the best one for your birthday._

_I have to go to a party now....  Wish me luck._

 

Why did these females keep insisting he was things that he clearly wasn’t? He wasn’t hot. He wasn’t famous. He wasn’t sweet.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Good luck, don’t get too smashed._

_I’ll be here if you get bored. I’ve got to read this thing that my English partner recommended._

_You know, I wish I could be there taking you to this party._

_Good thing that we’re not, you know, RL friends._

 

Hmpf, Orihime thought with an ironic laugh.  She had invited him to this party in real life and he turned her down.  Oh well, he had no idea she was Vega. Maybe she should drop a hint.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Don’t worry, I don’t drink much._

_What’d your English partner recommend?  A classic? Shakespeare? Lol_

_Why is it *good* that we’re not friends in RL?_

_Well, I am sure the protection from having my ass beat by tall chicks with green hair is one benefit, but anything else?_


	5. Called Out and Caught

Reading her response was like being hit several times in the face with a folding chair. He had to wrack his brain. He’d heard those words in the past week. Where had he seen them? Orihime had invited him to a party. He had told her the exact same thing. He never mentioned what Nel looked like so how did _Vega_ know?

 

She had called him Hot Shot. Orihime had called him Hot Shot too.

 

His eyes darted back and forth. He flipped through his contacts until he reached the redhead’s number and let it ring.

 

“Hold on Michelle, I’ve gotta take this,” Orihime said, stepping into the hall.

 

“Hello?”

 

“Tell me,” Ulquiorra said in a rush. “Tell me you’re not following me on Instagram. Tell me that your screen name is not Vega Strife double zero.”

 

“Uh… uh…  I…” she was dumbfounded.  She didn’t expect he would figure it out so quickly.  “Sorry?”

 

 _Sorry_? What the hell kind of response was that? “Sorry, you made me look like a fool today? Sorry that you didn’t say anything? Sorry, you’ve--”

 

“No.  I’m sorry I didn’t say anything. Today you were Ulquiorra and I was Orihime.  When I realized who else you were, I was still just Orihime. I didn’t really connect the dots until it was too awkward to say anything.”

 

A huff of air left him. All those comments. All those messages. His fucking English partner knew him better than his own best friend. His hand curled and uncurled as the frustration went through him. “Veggs, that’s bullshit. You just--I--You know what, I’m gonna chalk this up to Vanity Day.”

 

“What?  Um… okay,” she said in a small voice.  He sounded angry. Very angry. She wasn’t sure what set him off but she didn’t want to make it worse.

 

“I want a pic. A full-face pic. Send it to my DMs.”

 

“Now?”

 

“Something wrong with now? Are you naked? You said you were going to a party. I’m sure you’re dressed.” He was still feeling like a fool.

 

“Okay,” she said, then switched between apps and held the camera up to a selfie angle and took it.  “Sent,” she said after bringing the phone back to her face.

 

He put her on speaker and waited for the message to pop up. Sure enough, Vega had sent him something. “Holy shit,” he breathed.

 

“Tell me about it,” she murmured in response.  “So, I guess, I’ll introduce myself properly. My name is Orihime Inoue.  I’m 19 years old, my birthday was this past week on Tuesday. My name means weaver princess in Japanese and is from a folktale about the star, Vega.  I like Final Fantasy VII and my first crush was on the protagonist, Cloud Strife, from that game. My username is Vega.Strife00 because that’s my name’s meaning and I’m a huge nerd and I was born in 2000.”

 

Ulquiorra let out a small laugh. “Final Fantasy VII is good. I like them all except eleven, twelve, thirteen, and fourteen. XV is okay just because the graphics are amazing,” he said. “You know a lot about me already. So, where does this leave us now?”

 

“I dunno... for now, internet pals, classmates, and potential music buddies?  I’m open to other titles, I’m just throwing things out there. What do you want?”

 

“Well, seeing as you think I’m stringing Queen Bitch along--Jesus, I gushed about you to you.”

 

She giggled a tinkling little laugh. “Imagine my confusion, I thought you hated me in English and then you told me I was awesome.”

 

Ulquiorra pushed his face down into the mattress of his dorm bed and sighed. “Can we just pretend that we still don’t know who the other is? You’ve seen both sides of me. The online side more than the real-life side. You’re the same person through and through. Bubbly, smiley, trying to yank my head out of my ass. I can assure you that I’m only that way online.”

 

“No can do.  Although it is kind of going to be an adjustment.  Don’t get the wrong idea. I just think it’s going to take some time to marry these two versions of you together.  You’re not as different as you think, though, at least not to me. You were pretty charming at the gym, just saying.  I don’t mean that in a trying to pick me up kind of way. You were just fun and easy to talk to in a person to person way.  But, now that I think about it, maybe we can kind of keep these venues separated for the time being. Forcing something else would feel unnatural.  Besides, you’ve never seen my angry faces when you tell me things that piss me off online. I can’t hide it as well in real life.”

 

She assumed that he would tell her anything anymore. “I’m not charming,” Ulquiorra muttered. “Okay, why the lingerie pic? You were flirting with me even after you knew.”

 

“Well, I wasn’t gonna send a nude!  You said you posted a pic to have your ego stroked, and I thought turnabout was fair play.”

 

“Don’t expect a dick pic,” he said with a wide smile knowing she couldn’t see it. “I’ll let you get back to your party, Veggs.”

 

She sighed.  She had blown it.  “I don’t want…. Okay.  Talk to you later.”

 

As soon as he hung up he was back on Instagram.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Don’t want what? To go?_

_Go, party it up._

_Forget about crazy aunt and creepster_

_I’m in Robinson hall, btw._

 

Orihime felt relieved when she got the notification.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_I don’t want you to hate me.  I’m in the Virgin vault. (Eyeroll)._

_I was planning to go to this party with this Michelle girl I met yesterday who’s in Robinson._

_We’re stopping by on the way if I decide I still want to go after all this._

 

**ObscurasIV**

_The what? Lol_

_Why would I hate you?_

_I just felt kind of foolish. I wasn’t angry._

_Never really been out and out angry._

_Even when Nel told me that she commented on your video. I’m afraid to get truly angry._

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_The all-girls’ dorm.  Albertson Hall._

_I’m glad you don’t hate me.  I can be kind of dumb._

_Are you ready for me to delete that video yet?_

_BTW where does Nel live?  I feel like I should give her a wide berth._

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Ohhh. No! shit. I forgot._

_Don’t delete it._

_She lives on the third floor of Robinson. I’m on the 10th._

_She doesn’t know who you are. As far as she knows you’re my annoying English partner._

_You’re not dumb Hermione. :P_

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_I *am* your annoying English partner, Ernie._

_I promise not to send you any more unsolicited pics._

_Speaking of Nel, you should really shit or get off the pot._

_I know I sound like a broken record._

_Also…_

She paused and let it sit there as she scraped her teeth back and forth over her lip.  Now that he wasn’t right in front of her, it was easier to fall back into “ _Vega_ ” mode. She felt a strong compulsion to backtrack on the flirting she had done.

 

No.  She wasn’t going to apologize for who she was to him.  These past two years she had always considered him to be the one person she didn’t have to pretend to be someone else for.  She would fight to keep that connection. She felt a thickness in the back of her throat at the thought of him breaking things off with her online because of his loyalty to Nel or because he felt the same kind of pressure from her as he did from Nel about changing the relationship toward something more than just friends.

 

_Also, I’m not sorry about meeting you or saying what I said_

_but if you want to keep things like they were I’ll make sure to be okay with it._

_I don’t want to put pressure on you or lose my friend._

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Okay, we have several issues to deal with._

_The first is the fact that you said it wouldn’t be just friends._

_The second is that you interest me._

_I’m interested in you._

_Like you’ve always had my interest bc you don’t sugarcoat or bullshit me_.

 

Ulquiorra sighed as he thought about what Orihime had said to him at the gym. His eyes went wide. Oh hell.

 

_FUCK. You saw me with Nel this morning. It wasn’t what it looked like._

_I’m trying to get her to show some interest in this other guy she met._

_I told her I needed time this morning. She kissed me._

 

Orihime rolled her eyes.  Maybe she needed to be more cautious.  This guy could be a hard-headed idiot.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Well, I’m glad you like it when I lay some wisdom on you because I’m going to do it again._

_Of course she kissed you. You basically told her that if she waits you’ll come around._

_She’s not going to move on from you if she thinks she has a chance._

_You two have known each other for too long, she’s clearly very invested in you._

_She called me a “homewrecker” for singing about being your friend._

_This isn’t some little crush for her._

_I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you only have two choices with her._

_Do you want to hear them?_

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Do I have a choice?_

_What are they?_

_Give up my virginity to her or be caught with you? LOL_

_I’m totally kidding. I don’t wanna die._

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_I don’t know why you think it’s funny.  You’re close, though._

_One:  Be with her.  Like really do it.  Sex. I love you. The whole nine yards._

_That’s the only way she’ll ever be happy with you._

_Two:  Be the bad guy and break her heart._

_Sorry.  Sometimes life sucks and only gives you bad choices._

 

**ObscurasIV**

_No. No._ _It takes me fucking forever to get off with her._

_Like we’re talking HOURS._

_No. Eww. No._

_Not interested. Don’t love her romantically._

_She’s like a fucking sister._

_Oh god. I just figured it out._

 

Ulquiorra’s face scrunched up as the realization came over him. He was an only child so he didn’t know what it would be like to have a sibling but he imagined it would be like having someone like Nel around. She was annoying and obnoxious.

 

_I’m gonna die if I tell her._

_She’ll beat the shit out of me. LOL. Play Taps at my funeral okay?_

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Okay.  I don’t think you’ll tell her though so I won’t start practicing._

_I’m waiting for this Michelle girl (I think that might be her legal name, “This Michelle Girl” Smith or whatever)_

_She is kind of weird.  She didn’t want me coming up to her room.  She said it’s going to be ten minutes or so if you want to keep me company. I’m in your lobby._

 

He didn’t answer her. A long exhale came out of his mouth. Should he? Shouldn’t he? He grabbed his shoes and put them back on then grabbed his keys and wallet, along with his phone. Knowing his luck, he was probably going to be roped into this party. It didn’t take him long to ride the elevator down to there. His eyes automatically zeroed in on Orihime standing across the lobby.

 

Could he do this?

 

Shoving his hands into his pockets, Ulquiorra walked up to the redhead. “Hey,” he said quietly.

 

She turned around and smiled.  “Hi.” She pulled her jacket around her a bit.  She had decided to wear the bustier and didn’t really feel like showing it off anymore.

 

“Cold?” he asked with a slight smile.

 

A self-conscious laugh followed.  “Just feel a little underdressed.”

 

He raised his eyebrows at her. “Is it the outfit from the pic?” Ulquiorra couldn’t help ribbing her. “Uh, I’d ask for a peek but you look uncomfortable as it is.”

 

“It is, and I’m sure if you keep a sharp eye you’ll get a peek anyway.  This jacket doesn’t actually button. Thanks a lot, fast fashion,” she said, blushing.

 

“How did you get roped into going to a party anyway? Don’t tell me you’re one of those partier chicks.”

 

“No, not usually, it’s just that before today the only person I knew on campus was my roommate, and she is nice but not very interested in expanding her social circle.  I mean, I knew you as my class partner but I didn’t anticipate becoming social with you. You came across as pretty closed off until this morning. Anyway, this party is going to have a lot of people from my department and I have a tendency to fade into the background if the people around me seem to already have established a camaraderie without me, so I didn’t want to get left behind,” she said, then twisted her mouth to the side.  “I take that back, my drummer and bassist are nice but they are weird.”

 

Ulquiorra shuffled his feet. “I am closed off. I don’t expand my social circle but that’s because of Nel.”

 

Orihime sighed and shook her head.  She really didn’t like Nel, and she had never even met her.  It had little to do with the woman though; it had everything to do on the effect she had on her friend.  “I’m sorry. If she sees us together you can just tell her I’m a lesbian or something.”

 

He scoffed and shook his head. “If she sees us together she can deal. We just established that she’s like a sister to me, Veggs. Besides, not interested in her so I don’t care what she thinks. I mean I do, but I don’t.”

 

“And there’s the rub.  In the end, you do care.  I’m not in the business of making your life harder than it needs to be.  If you want to lie and make your life easier, you have my blessing is all I’m saying.”

 

“No, I don’t. You told me earlier that I was stringing her along. You just told me not fifteen minutes ago to either seduce her or drop her.” Ulquiorra didn’t really get what she wanted from him.

 

“You misinterpret me.  I’m not your boss. I wouldn’t tell you what to do.  I’m just telling you what your options are if you want to get out of your current situation.  You’re a grown man. You make your own choices.”

 

He folded his arms over his chest and looked away from the female. “Technically males aren’t fully matured or grown until they hit twenty-five. I know what my options are. I’m aware of what they are. She didn’t turn crazy until I showed interest in someone else.”

 

“Honestly, the only thing about her that sounds crazy to me is that she hasn’t hit the end of her rope already.  Okay, she sounds a bit extreme but she sounds like she’s in love. If you’ve never felt it, I guess you can’t really sympathize,” she said, absent-mindedly bringing her hands to her hips, allowing the jacket to fall open.

 

His gaze automatically dropped down and Ulquiorra had to keep himself from drooling. “Wanna go up to my room instead of standing around down here?”

 

She looked around the lobby.  That Michelle girl was nowhere to be found.  “Yeah, Okay.”

 

Ulquiorra felt exposed standing in the lobby. The entire week he’d spent at school had been in his dorm room or in classes. He was at instant ease once they got into the elevator. “That thing is nicer in person,” he managed to say as the doors closed.

 

A half-smile twisted her lips as she looked down at herself.  “It’s kind of a habit—a hobby. I have kind of a lot of stuff like this,” she admitted, mildly self-conscious.

 

“Lingerie is your thing? I would have never guessed that,” Ulquiorra said. “Definitely not the normal geek girl schtick.”

 

She blushed and bit her lip.  “You know how it is, girls want to hear that they look pretty.  I haven’t had anyone to tell me that for a long while so I had to do something to convince myself.  Plus stuff like this is great to wear to some gigs. Keeps the tip jar full.”

 

Hmph. He gave her another glance before the elevator stopped on his floor. “C’mon, it’s just around the corner,” he said motioning for her to follow.

 

Orihime followed silently.  She was wary; Nel lived here and could be anywhere.

 

He looked down the hall in both directions before he unlocked the door to his room and allowed Orihime to enter first. Szayel wasn’t there, then again the guy only showed up to change clothes or sleep for a few hours. “Go ahead and take a seat,” Ulquiorra said motioning to his side of the room.

 

She glanced around.  It was a typical dorm room; not much personalization yet.  She considered the desk chair but it looked too high and was on rollers; there was a decent chance she could roll right out of it and into a wardrobe malfunction.  She sat at the foot of his bed instead.

 

“So now that you have a face and a name, do you want me to keep calling you Vega or Veggs?” Ulquiorra asked, sitting beside her.

 

“Depends on the context.  Don’t call me Vega in front of anyone in my department; it’s also my stage name.  If it gets back to my aunt that I’m still using it I’ll have trouble. But, I mean, I have business cards and everything,”  she chuckled, dipping a hand into her purse and pulling out a black card with white writing and a shadow of a piano in the background.  “If you’re ever in the market for a lounge act,” she said, passing him the card that read “Vega Highwell, vocalist,” and had her phone number and an email address that incorporated that name.

 

Ulquiorra took the card and then tucked it into his pocket. “It’s funny. I’ve got cards and merchandise set up but I go by Obscuras IV. Never sang in public before. Never booked a show. I want to do it but on the other hand, I don’t want everything blowing up in my face.

 

“I see,” Orihime said, putting her hands behind her hips and leaning back a bit, lifting her right foot enough to examine her shoe.  “You could always use an alias. No one knows what your face looks like yet. That way you can test the waters and see if it is something you love doing enough to deal with things blowing up.”  As she finished speaking, she turned to look at him, waiting for his reaction.

 

It was rude for him to stare but he couldn’t take his eyes off of her. Ulquiorra’s eyes traveled from her dark red hair down her face and chest where he lingered and down to her legs. When he got back to her face, he knew he’d been caught. “Uh, if Instagram is any indication, it’s gonna blow up. I post a body pic and people go insane. I post a rendition of a classic song, people go nuts.”

 

“I know you would be incredibly successful.  That’s not the question. The question is, do you want to?  That’s why I suggest testing out live shows. Perform under an alias.  Or do the coffee house gigs with me under my name. Or we can do a Vega and, what does your name mean?”

 

“Heh, no. I’m not telling you what it means. No one but my parents know what it means,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Oh, c’mon, it can’t be  _that_ bad,” she said, nudging his knee with hers lightly.  “Ulquiorra is a sweet name. It falls off the tongue nicely.  Ulquiorrrra, see?” She demonstrated, rolling the r’s like she would if she were singing opera.

 

“It’s Spanish. It means he who cries.” the green-eyed man looked at her before he glanced away. Not even Nel knew what his name actually meant. That’s how embarrassed he was of his name. “So, anything you want clarification on?”

 

“Yeah, why are you so embarrassed?  Ulquiorra could be crying for any number of reasons, grief, happiness, general emotion.  Or you could be crying out? For help? In anger? In ecstasy? See, it doesn’t sound so bad when you put it in context,” she said with a suggestive raise of her right brow.  She was trying to pull him out of this cloud that had settled over him.

 

Both of his eyebrows shot up. When the hell did his body realize that he actually had hormones because the moment she said ecstasy he wanted it. “Uh,” he said before clearing his throat. He looked at Orihime’s body again. “Um, as I said, I wouldn’t say no.”

 

“Good, because I’m getting on that at my first opportunity,” she said, grinning.  “I’ll work on the name.”

 

“I--I-okay,” was all he managed to say. Here he was faced with his dream girl and all he could be was a bumbling idiot. Nice. Real nice. “You keep sitting like that and I’m going to check you out more.”

 

“Really?  Thanks. That’s, um, nice to hear, actually.  It’s a lot better than “shoulders back, tits out,” like Professor Creepy Josh Groban says,” she said, mimicking the smooth, deep tone and repeating the posture.

 

Ulquiorra’s cheeks puffed out as he exhaled. “They’re kind of nice to look at,” he replied, rubbing the side of his face. “If he’s creepy why do you keep him around or is he an actual teacher?”

 

“See?  It feels nice when _you_ say it.  He _is_ an actual teacher.  Kind of my most influential one.  Hopefully, he tones it down. Most of them do when you don’t simper and fawn over them  or you get lucky and they die of old age before things get too out of hand.”

 

“That sucks,” he stated. She probably knew how bad it sucked first hand. He let a hand raise off the bed to touch a ribbon on the bustier. “This is nice. I mean the picture doesn’t really do it justice. Makes me kind of glad that I uh, posted that photo. I could show you the real-life version.”

 

Shit. _Shit_ , Orihime thought. On one hand, Mother may I?  On the other, he kind of had a girlfriend. “Oh yeah?” she said, a small smile and blush coloring her face.  She had meant to decline politely. Oh well. She had needs, too. That Michelle girl could go to the party on her own.  She probably already had. “If you want I can show you my “bad habit” folder.”

 

His eyebrows rose again and he was about to answer but his phone buzzed. Ulquiorra ignored it. “Bad habit?” he asked as he stood up. He wasn’t used to trying to seduce anyone. With Nel, everything had felt forced and unnatural. With _Vega_ \--No, with Orihime this felt nice. It felt natural. “It’s only fair that I show you the real thing since you showed me.”

 

She bit her lip and smiled at him through it.  “Okay, but in that case, the jacket has to go. It’s only fair,” she said, shrugging it off.  It was getting warm in there anyway.

 

“I would agree.” Ulquiorra looked at the female sitting on his bed and bit his lip. Was this heat coursing through his body what he was supposed to feel when he and Nel fooled around? Just staring at Orihime, he felt his face get hot and he wanted to kiss her. Taking a deep breath, he inched his shirt up his stomach and chest.

 

“Damn, Ulquiorra. Do you work out?” she asked, giggling.  She knew he did. “Alright Adonis, you’ve earned access to the folder.  Pick a number one through ten.”

 

He had brought the t-shirt over his head and threw it onto the bed. “Uh, like is this how many I get to see or the number position in your album?” he asked sitting beside her again.

 

“Not quite.  C’mon, make this fun for me.  Pick!”

 

“Four.”

 

“Alright.  A nice, conservative number,” she said, setting a timer for four minutes on her phone. “You get until the timer goes off to browse Bad Habit.  Here you go,” she said, starting the timer and opening the folder, then putting it into his hand.

 

His eyes went wide as he saw the thumbnails of the pictures. Ulquiorra’s mouth went dry as he tapped on one and then used his thumb to swipe through them. Oh. My. “Fuck,” he murmured as he continued to look at the woman in different sets of lingerie. “This is… Who did you take these for?” Ulquiorra had stopped on a particular set that he really liked.

 

“Anything from after June 25, 2017, were for myself.  Oh, I forgot, if you want you can pick four to send to yourself.  You are not obligated to do that, though.”

 

He looked over at her before turning his attention back to the device. “Nah, I’m good. I’m not the guy who says send nudes. These are--” The timer that she set buzzed. Just as well, he was just going to tell her how good she looked. As soon as he handed the phone back, he put his shirt back on. What was he doing? Didn’t he have Nel in his bed just last night? It hadn’t been for very long, but still. He hadn’t wanted to dick down Nel. He wanted to do that to Orihime though if he was being honest with himself. What the fuck was wrong with him? “I should probably let you go so you can go to that party.”

 

Oh.  Oh. Okay.  Now she was humiliated. He probably thought she was a nasty slut.  Her face colored and she smiled a bit, shrugging back into her jacket.  “Alright. Um, I’ll, uh, see you Monday then, right?” she said, standing and seeing herself to the door.

 

Ulquiorra felt like something was off so he walked over to where the short woman stood. “Uh, I mean you can stay if you want but I’m boring and I’d probably just stare at you the entire time you’re here. I would probably fumble over bad pick up lines,” he said, leaning against the door. “I don’t want to disappoint you. The moment you find out how I truly am, you’ll be like, bye loser.”

 

A scoff.  “You really want me to stay or are you just saying that because I can’t mask my feelings to save my life?”

 

“I mean, I do want you to stay but,” he paused a moment. “I’m not--I don’t know--this… it isn’t this hard to talk to you online. It seems--Look, I’ve made it awkward again. I want to be by you and talk to you but you had plans tonight.”

 

“Listen, I’ve obviously been ditched by that Michelle girl.  You don’t have to try to protect my feelings. You won’t be the first, or even the second guy to have second thoughts and tell me to leave, okay?  I can take it. I’ll get out of your hair,” she said with a small nod and put her hand on the doorknob.

 

He didn’t move from where he was. Instead, Ulquiorra braced his body against the door. “I’m not having second thoughts. I can’t even get through my first thoughts. I’m sure you’ve never been in my shoes but all I kinda want to do is make out with you. That’s rude though because technically, I just met you.”

 

“That’s not rude.  Making out is fun if you like someone.  Is it rude to offer someone some pizza if they like pizza?  Even if it’s a pizza they’ve never tried before? I don’t think so.  I mean, if the person had expressed extreme derision toward pizza then I’d say you might have an argument.  Or maybe if a person just hated Italy and its cuisine, although in that case I’d say just back away slowly in general and keep your pizza to yourself,” she paused her tangent.  She was so weird.

 

“That’s just the thing. I don’t know if you like me or you’re just being nice. You ramble,” he stated. “I like pizza just fine but it’s been subpar pizza. I finally found a pizza topping I really like and I want to try it.” Ulquiorra wanted to cringe at himself for comparing her to pizza like a dork.

 

“I like you just fine,” she said.  “I’ve never shown Bad Habit to anyone.”

 

“After June 25th, 2017, you mean.”

 

“Right, but it was just called “my photos” back then.”

 

“So...” he looked down at her and trailed off.

 

“Oh, for god’s sake,” she said, standing up on her toes and touching her lips to his briefly.  “Now are you convinced?”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “You could have done that to shut me up,” he replied.

 

She sighed, rolling her eyes.  “No, if I wanted to shut you up I would have done something like this,” she said, putting a hand behind his neck and pulling his head down to hers and kissing him firmly with parted lips, letting the tip of her tongue touch the seam of his lips.

 

His mind went blank as she kissed him. Ulquiorra knew what to do but he’d never kissed anyone but Nel. The teal-haired female had rules of where he could touch and where he couldn’t. Don’t mess up her hair, try not to smudge her lip color. Orihime was practically inviting him to do all of that. He brought his hands up to her waist and shifted his body closer to hers. She was short and it caused him to have to lean his head down towards her.

 

This was good. It was different. It wasn’t Nel. He actually wanted to kiss Orihime. He found this heat in his body a good thing.

 

At first, she began to feel disappointment when he didn’t respond, but she smiled as his hands touched her waist.  She relaxed the hand that held his neck and let it slide down to the side of it to rest under his ear, then brought her other hand up to his bicep.  This was nice. She hummed her satisfaction.

 

When it felt like he couldn’t breathe, Ulquiorra broke the kiss for a moment before placing light kisses on the corner of her mouth. “So, that’s what it’s like to kiss your number one fan,” he said with a slight smirk.

 

“Pffffft,” she responded to that.  “Fine, I’ll accept the title.”

 

“You accept that one along with internet buds, music pals, and classmates,” he said, backing her up towards the bed. “It’s okay. I’m a huge fan of Vega Highwell.”

 

A megawatt grin was his reward for that little bit of sweet-talk.   She allowed herself to be guided toward the bed and when the back of her legs made contact, she sat and scooted back to make room for him.

 

His shirt came off again and Ulquiorra emptied his pockets, shoving the items onto his desk. When he joined the short woman on his bed, he sat next to her, blushing slightly.

 

He seemed shy.  It was cute. Cute, but not sexy.  “I won’t bite unless you want me to,” she said softly, that grin of hers still splashed across her face.  

 

A small chuckle left him. How much should he reveal to her? “Just getting used to this… The idea, you know?” Ulquiorra said as he turned toward her. He licked his lips before he brought his mouth close to hers.

 

“The idea?  Which idea is that?” she asked, pecking his lips and pulling back.

 

“Us. This. I mean I’ve entertained the idea but you were just some screen name and I always imagined you living on the other side of the country,” Ulquiorra said before he pulled her into his lap, using his hands to bring her face up to his.

 

Her eyes nearly disappeared, she was smiling so big.  The apples of her cheeks lived up to their fruity name.  “Well, I can’t say you were alone in that endeavor. All this time I’ve kind of compared everyone I’ve met to you. Most of them don’t fare well.”

 

“Yeah? How do I rate?” he asked, letting his thumb travel over her jaw. This sensation running through his body felt like happiness mixed with lust. It felt like when he got turned on by himself without the pressure. “Am I at the top? Close to the top? I don’t have much to compare you to but the real thing is awesome.”

 

“I’m your number one fan.  You are second only to Cloud Strife.  I was married to him, you know, since the fifth grade.  We were sadly divorced when he got together with those Midgar hookers, but I kept the name,” she joked.  “Real you is pretty awesome too.”

 

He smiled. Ulquiorra never smiled… at least not the way he was smiling now with both corners of his mouth pulled and showing his teeth. “Sephiroth is so much better.”

 

“Shhhhhhhhh!  He was too much man for me at the time, but now…  I mean he _did_ set a town on fire just by smizing at it.”

 

“Cloud was being overdramatic,” Ulquiorra replied before he slid his hands down her body. “Have I mentioned how much I like this? I mean… I didn’t know I liked lingerie on a woman or whatever this is. I like it a lot.”

 

“Well lucky for you, I like it a lot too.  This is called a bustier and it’s one of the few things I’ll wear in public.  You _may_ have mentioned that you didn’t hate it.  I don’t get tired of hearing it though.”

 

Ulquiorra’s face colored again and he looked to the side. So far everything that she had worn and he had seen her in, he liked. “Hey, um, Veggs.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

He was acting like such an insecure emo bitch. He shook his head as if to dismiss the thought.

 

“Uh-uh.  You tell me the truth.  I don’t sugarcoat or blow smoke up your ass.  You don’t do it for me. Be honest. You are the same guy you’re just not typing.”

 

“It’s easier to say things online than it is face to face,” he replied. “It’s stupid. It really is.”

 

“Nope,” she said, shaking her head, then turned her body so that she was face to face with him with her knees on either side of his thighs.  She put her hands on either side of his face and gazed into his eyes with a kind of easy affection. “I’m not letting you get away that easily.  Tell me what you’re thinking. It doesn’t do any good to pretend.”

 

Ulquiorra sighed. “I don’t want you to think I’m desperate or that--I don’t want things to be weird between us. I mean we already crossed the line.”

 

“Why would I think you’re desperate?  You don’t sound desperate at all. I know you don’t have a lot of experience but this is part of it.  It’s supposed to be a little scary and disorienting at first.”

 

Oh. So this was normal. Ulquiorra had never felt this before. With Nel this was different. It was an irritation when he was with Nel like this. It was nothing but putting up his defenses with her. With Orihime, he hadn’t felt like that once. He could actually relax. “You still going to respect me in the morning?” he asked with a smile.

 

She laughed and shook her head.  “You are damn cute, you know that?”  She gave him a little hug and leaned back to look at his face again.  “I could shrink you down and keep you right here all the time like an adorable little locket,” she said, pointing to the space between her breasts.  “But I rather like you full-sized.”

 

“I knew you were Hermione. You want to Rita Skeeter me. Shrink me down and make me live in a jar,” he said.

 

“Oh no no no no no.  Not a jar. In my cleavage.  It’s much more comfortable there, I assure you.”

 

He glanced up at her before Ulquiorra leaned forward and placed his lips against that spot she had pointed at on her chest. It was forward of him but he had to take the plunge. He could not sit there and be scared of everyone just because of Nel. He let his mouth rest there for a moment before he slid it up towards her collarbone.

 

His forwardness was rewarded with a quiet gasp and goosebumps.  Her hands were immobile at first, but her body responded quickly and one of her hands found its way into his hair and the other ghosted over the muscles of his arm.  She was loving this. She was going to have to send that Michelle girl a thank you card for ditching her.

 

Ulquiorra groaned, letting the sound draw out, wrapping his arms around her waist. This was hot. It was the combined heat from his own body and hers that was probably clouding his judgment. When he was sure she wouldn’t move, he moved his hands up slowly to her shoulders letting his fingers worm under the straps of her top. “Fair is fair right?” he asked panting against her neck.

 

“Yeah,” she breathed,  “this thing is a little tricky.  Do you want some help?”

 

“Unless you just want a scrap of lace.”

 

She smiled and nodded, letting go of him and sitting up, tipping her shoulders back and bringing her hands behind her back.  This movement resulted in the top swells of her breasts threatening to break free on their own until she got the multitude of hooks undone in the back and the contraption hung loosely over her.  Ulquiorra’s hands were still on the straps. “The rest is up to you,” she murmured.

 

He looked at her and then back at her chest. Slipping one strap off her shoulder he kissed the skin before he did the same thing to the other side. “Tell me what you thought of the after gym selfie,” Ulquiorra said, stroking the woman’s collar bones with the back of his fingers.

 

A somewhat ragged breath followed his question as she tried to catch her breath.  The thing he was doing with his fingers was incredibly erotic. “I believe my exact words to myself were “holy shit” a million times, and then I turned nine shades of red.  When you texted me, I was waiting for you in the practice room; that was about fifteen seconds after I had seen it. I was still blushing when I saw you on the stairs. Your body is…” she lost all the air in her lungs as it came out quickly and she gasped another breath.  “It’s _very_ attractive.”

 

He took his time removing the skimpy piece of lace and bra thing Orihime wore. Ulquiorra had to swallow back a groan as the peak of a nipple came into view. Would she like it though? He mentally shook himself. He wasn’t going to think about what he’d done with Nel while with Orihime like this. His thumb circled the sensitive skin, using the pad to make it peak further. “You’re very attractive, Vega.”

 

There was a long, drawn-out sigh.  “That feels nice,” she cooed after taking another breath.

 

The thumb traveled in a spiral around her breast until the tip brushed against her nipple. “How does the real-life me stack up against the online one?” Ulquiorra was trying to distract her if only to draw this entire thing out. He only had eyes for her and what they were doing. He didn’t hear his phone buzzing. He didn’t hear his email notifications going off. He was entirely focused on the redheaded woman in his lap.

 

“The real thing is a very pleasant improvement.  You even smell good,” she said, bringing her nose to the side of his neck and sniffing softly, then placing a kiss below his ear and murmuring, “Obscuras Four is a cool guy but Ulquiorra Cifer is fucking sexy,” before pressing her bare front to his and latching on to the juncture of his neck and shoulder.

 

“Hnnnngh,” he moaned. “Just wait until you see me at full-size.” Ulquiorra bit his lip feeling Orihime sucking on his neck. There was probably going to be an impressive hickey there tomorrow.

 

Orihime whimpered at his words and finally released the spot on his neck, licking it and kissing her way to his mouth.  She was starting to get into the zone where her brain almost completely shut down and she was running on pure hormones. Once her lips were on his, she walked up his lap on her knees and settled on his hips, testing the feel of what he said was not yet full-size.

 

His hips jerked up as soon as her weight settled on him. “Fuck,” he moaned. As soon as his semi-hard dick came into contact with Orihime’s body he let out a hiss. With Nel, this had been a chore. It wasn’t enjoyable. This totally was enjoyable. This was paradise. All thoughts of him being aromantic or asexual just got booted out the window. “Orihime,” he breathed, his mouth kissing hers as his hands finally cupped her breasts.

 

She moaned and sighed his name in return, then kissed him again, her tongue finding its way into his mouth and running against his.  As she broke away moments later she breathed, “Ulquiorra, I…” she didn’t finish her thought because her hips had a mind of their own and rolled over the seam of his jeans, causing her to groan.

 

The sharp inhale of breath from him was audible. “Well?” he huffed, as he rocked his hips against her.

 

She yelped softly.  “Yeah, that’s nice,” she said, sounding a bit tortured.  “More than nice but my brain is not taking any calls for vocabulary at the moment,” she ground out in shudder as she rolled over him again.

 

“Heh,” Ulquiorra chuckled. He brought his mouth down to hers, letting his tongue lap at the seam of her mouth. When her lips parted, his tongue slid against hers.

 

No one heard the door open. Ulquiorra didn’t hear it. He couldn’t speak for Orihime but he knew he did not hear the wood barrier swing open.

 

“WHAT THE FUCK?!”

 

Orihime froze.  Her eyes flickered up to Ulquiorra’s quickly and widened.  She wanted to pretend this wasn’t happening.

 

He pulled back from the woman in his lap and looked around her to see Nel standing in the doorway with her hands on her hips. Szayel was standing in the hallway behind her. “Nel?”

 

“It sure looks like you need time,” the teal-haired woman spat. “You’re such a fucking asshole, Ulquiorra.”

 

With that, she spun on her heel and stomped out of his dorm room. It was his pink-haired roommate who closed the door. Ulquiorra could hear the man relock the door.

 

“I’m sorry,” he said, swallowing.

 

Her flushed cheeks looked strange against the new paleness that drained the color from the rest of her face.  “If you need to go after her, I understand,” she whispered.

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “I’m not giving her the satisfaction of being chased after. You said I was giving her chances and hope. If I don’t pursue her, I’ll kill that right? Besides, I don’t want you to leave.”

 

“Really?”  Her eyebrows tented in surprise.

 

“Yeah,” he replied. “I mean I know Nel kind of ruined the mood but maybe we can watch a movie or--or--Want to order a pizza?”


	6. First Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EIV actually owns the HP shirt!

 

She pecked his lips.  “Are you asking me to Netflix and not-chill?” she inquired with a glimmer of humor in her eyes.

 

“I mean we can totally chill but you know, I feel like I should offer you dinner before getting into your pants,” Ulquiorra stated. He bit his lip before continuing. “We don’t have to do anything. You can listen to me play the guitar or the keyboard for a couple of hours. I didn’t get the chance to practice today. Not that it matters much. We could talk about things. You could satisfy my curiosity as to why you seemed to ghost my ass a while back.”

 

She took a deep breath. “Well, I’d like to do all of those things, but I think water and talking in between songs would be the best use of time at first.  Um… I hope it’s not too forward, but do you have a t-shirt or something that I could borrow?”

 

Ulquiorra patted her thigh before moving Orihime off of him and to the side. He walked over to his closet and rifled through the t-shirts hanging there. He pulled a dark gray t-shirt off a hanger and looked at it before he threw it to Orihime. It was one of the few Harry Potter things he had. “You’re like, I don’t know… You know me better than Nel does, Veggs. Mi casa, su casa.”

 

She smiled and picked up the shirt from where it fell in front of her on the bed and looked at what was written on it.  “Really? _Gryffindor in the streets, Slytherin in the sheets_?” She said with a baffled smile.

 

He shrugged as he made his way over to the mini-fridge he had bought when he got to the city. Extracting a bottle of water, he brought it over to Orihime. “I mean you can always put on that distracting bra you were wearing,” he offered. “Pizza or Chinese?”

 

“Ooh, you are spicy.  I’ll wear it, Mr. Ravenclaw.  Chinese. Less dairy and garlic,” she explained as she pulled the shirt over her head.  “I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable with my distracting bra thing,” she teased.

 

Ulquiorra turned his back to her to adjust himself. Just because Nel had disturbed them didn’t mean his dick got that message. “Well, I think we should look up the number to the Chinese place. You can do that if you want, I’ll go get changed into something less confining,” he said.

 

“Alright,” she replied, turning her back to him to give him privacy.  Just because they’d been making out only a couple minutes ago didn’t necessarily mean he was comfortable with her ogling him.  She reached for her phone and picked it up. “I knew it. That stinkin’ Michelle girl. She sent me a message saying she didn’t want to go to the party with me because …  oh for god’s sake that is just stupid.” Orihime scoffed and then started looking up Chinese places.

 

He had turned his head to her and peered at Orihime over his shoulder. “What? Already got haters?” Ulquiorra asked as he shucked his jeans off his legs and pulled on a pair of sweats. He placed the jeans into the basket he kept under his bed and then collected the t-shirt he had worn. He didn't want to show too much of his OCD around her. He grabbed her bustier and folded it, placing it on his desk. When everything was picked up, he joined her where she was on the bed. “Why didn’t she want to go with you?”

 

“It’s dumb.  She said she didn’t want me hogging all the attention. I don’t know why she would think that.  People usually don’t notice me. People _do_ notice loud girls with crazy coyote eyes that reek of desperation, but I digress,” Orihime said, sighing.  She sounded like she didn’t care but her shoulders told a different story. “This place looks okay, what did you want to order?” She asked, offering her phone.

 

He caught the reference to Nel but it could also be taken as Orihime’s date for the party. He let the amusement he felt show on his face for a brief moment. “If you had gone and she not ditched you, you wouldn’t have been here. We wouldn’t have talked. We wouldn’t have, you know.”

 

“That’s right.  I’m still going to send her a thank you card.  Still, it stings a little. It’s hard for me to make female friends.  Everyone I meet is so competitive. I guess that’s performers for you, there is only so much room under the spotlight and everyone wants all of it.  I don’t want it though… not the one they are fighting me for, anyway. It makes me glad for my roommate. She doesn’t want anything to do with anyone else in my department but she tolerates me, so basically she is my BFF.  Present company excluded, of course,” she said without even thinking about it.

 

“You know, it was chance that today happened,” Ulquiorra said as he looked through his food choices. “While on our run this morning, I found a coffee shop on the edge of campus. And she saw someone who is part of her Drawing and Comp class. Nel’s going for a bachelor’s in digital media. I have no clue what she has to do but she and I talked on our way from the coffee shop to the gym. I could tell she was going to ditch me because she had an opportunity to do something. I think she went and had sex with the guy. Not that I care. She’s free to do whatever, just like I am. I’m kind of glad she found someone to hang out with.”

 

Orihime was skeptical about all that but she kept it to herself.  It was a nice sentiment and she didn’t want to bring him down. “Yeah, It would be nice if she has that, wouldn’t it?” She commented rather neutrally.  “Anyway, even if she had come in with you I would have flagged you down. I had wanted to ask you about the English project since I never read your email.  I’m sure it would have not been a pretty picture if she was there and I came bouncing over to you like you were my long lost bestie.”

 

“She might have gone off. She might not have. Who knows. Had she been there she would have blocked us from singing together,” Ulquiorra said as he made his choice. “The sesame chicken had better be good.”

 

“Sesame chicken, huh?  I was thinking about getting that.  We can either double up or I can get something else just in case it sucks,” she said, perusing the menu.  “Singapore noodles sound good,” she muttered. “You ready to order?”

 

“Yeah, sesame chicken. Order whatever. I guess this can be treated like a first date of sorts,” Ulquiorra said. He gave her another shy smile.

 

She returned the expression and made her selection.  “Do you have any cash or should I…?” She let the question hang in the air.  She didn’t mind paying but she didn’t want to step on his toes, either.

 

“I’m paying.” Ulquiorra had always paid for the date when he and Nel went out somewhere. “I get an allowance from my dad and my mom makes bank so they make sure I have what I need. I also worked at this coffee shop practically from the summer of my sophomore year up to when I left for school.”

 

“Well aren’t you a gentleman?” she said with a smile.  “I don’t know if I ever told you but my parents died when I was really little.  I don’t really remember them. But, they made sure I was taken care of before they died.  Unfortunately, they made my aunt trustee until I’m like twenty-two or something. She doles it out for all my big living expenses and a monthly stipend but the rest is up to me.”

 

Ulquiorra gave her a sympathetic look. He kind of felt sorry for her. Vega had mentioned she lived with a crazy aunt who was fanatical but she never told him the circumstances surrounding it. “I’m sorry. You know my parents are divorced. I don’t know my mom all that well. My dad and Steve raised me. Plus Nel’s mom but she doesn’t really count because well, crazy breeds crazy.”

 

“You mentioned it.  Don’t be sorry, I never really knew them but they seemed like decent people.  We lived in San Francisco apparently. I grew up in Minneapolis, though.” She was quiet for a minute.  “Nel is crazy, huh? Do I have to watch my back now?”

 

“You don’t think she’s crazy? Who the hell comes busting into someone’s personal space and starts yelling?” Ulquiorra sighed. “She’s kind of scary when she gets mad.”

 

“Well, I knew she was not exactly  _normal_ but crazy is a matter of degrees,” she shrugged.  She didn’t really want to talk about Nel but she was a little worried about getting her ass kicked.  “Anyway, you said you were curious about some things. Anything in particular?”

 

He furrowed his brow to think about what he wanted to know. “Oh, right. Months ago you just seemed to disappear. What happened? It happened a couple of times but not as long as the first time.”

 

She cringed.  “Yeah… sorry about that.  I didn’t disappear completely; I always thumbs-upped your videos and liked your Instagram posts.  Anyway, the reason I got kind of quiet is that I had a boyfriend and I felt kind of weird about carrying on with another guy when I was dating someone, even if there was really nothing wrong with what we were doing. I mean we were just talking and you didn’t know I was a girl, even.  But still, I felt like I was cheating.”

 

He gave a slow nod. “Gotcha. I understand. Whenever you ghost me from now on, you’ve got a man. I thought it was for some sinister reason; like your aunt went crazy and cut the wifi.”

 

“That may have happened at one point,” she said with a small laugh.  “That first boyfriend was a doozy. I really rebelled hard to make a point.  I was an idiot,” she said, shaking her head. “And I think it’s safe to say our relationship has fundamentally changed… internet ghosting is not really a realistic escape strategy anymore,” she chuckled and paused.  “I would never really ghost you though. I am sorry it felt like it. The fact is that even though I never knew what you looked like, I developed a crush on you pretty early on. I was just trying to be decent… I am not always the brightest bulb on the tree.”

 

Ulquiorra gave a one-shoulder shrug. “Eh, it’s okay. I mean if you do get a boyfriend or whatever--It’s none of my business. Not really. I just...” He trailed off then brought his hands up to his face, using his fingers to press into his cheeks. “Yeahhhh, I’ll shut up.”

 

She scoffed and raised an eyebrow at him.  “You sound like you have some thinking to do.  You just said this was a date. I think it would be my business if someone I was dating entered a relationship with someone.  I might want to know to back off, but that’s just me,” she laughed. She wasn’t upset that he was confused. They had just met that day; there was bound to be confusion.  “Don’t be so hard on yourself, this is kind of bewildering.”

 

“Bewildering isn’t the word for it. Try… This is a mindfuck. We know each other but now we don’t. It’s awkward and--If I take you out on a date or I call something a date, that doesn’t mean I’m dating you. It’s just hanging out.”

 

“I see.  Thank you for the clarification.”  So he was one of _those_ guys.  Well, she was better off knowing now than later. She had something to think about now.  She leaned against the wall and looked at the ceiling. “I wonder if I would have managed to rope you into singing with me anyway over the course of our group projects.  I would think so,” she said, trying to seem casual.

 

His eyes narrowed at the petite woman. “I didn’t clarify anything. You told me I needed to figure out this thing with Nel before--Let me get my phone and I’ll give you word for word what you said. You’re the one who said to deal with Nel. Don’t you think it’s kind of rude for me to assume that you want to be with me when you said that?” Ulquiorra sighed then looked at Szayel’s side of the room. “You might have roped me into it but the day you walked into English… I was staring at you the way I was to tell you to find someone else to work with. You must have taken it as an invitation.”

 

“Uh, no.  I’m not an idiot.  I knew you didn’t want to work with me.  I just didn’t care. No one else was available and I was not going to be without a partner just because you were cranky.  Besides, I can be very charming…” she said with a small smile and a rising inflection.

 

“Charming, huh?” He asked while turning to face her. “You managed to press my OCD buttons within the first thirty minutes of knowing you. I don’t mind it though.”

 

“Oh?  How did I manage that?”

 

He gave a scoff. “Late. Uh, you pushed yourself into my personal bubble. You got me interested in you.”

 

“Huh,” she laughed, “Late is a matter of opinion.  I’d say I was right on time. Anyway, I got you interested in me because I made you upset.  Wait…” she pulled out her phone and brought up her IG messages. “You bitched about me to _me_!”  She raised her eyebrows and started to laugh incredulously.  “How dare you?” She laughed even harder.

 

“Where exactly did I bitch about you to you. I never said anything of the sort! You did the same thing. _Ugh, I got paired up again_!” Ulquiorra laughed for a moment.

 

“Just minutes after that first English class you said you hated college and wanted to be homeless.  I take that to mean you hated being paired up with me. I can understand though. I am a terrible human being, always smiling and trying to be nice…”  she laughed some more after making a stink face at her own comment.

 

Bending over slightly, Ulquiorra caught her mouth with his for a quick kiss. “That wasn’t bitching at you. That was my general dislike for my fellow humans.”

 

She blushed as a dreamy kind of look settled over her features.  “You can be pretty charming, despite a general dislike for the humans…” she finally managed to say after a few dazed seconds.

 

“Ah hah,” he said with a slight smirk. “That’s how I get you under my spell.” Ulquiorra sat back again. “That shirt looks good on you. It suits you.”

 

She raised her eyebrows to look up at his face without tipping her head back.  “Yeah? Is it the shirt or is it that I’m not wearing a bra?”

 

“Both? All? The idea of Vega in my shirt sounds very appealing.” Ulquiorra blushed slightly. He wasn’t used to flirting with someone.

 

She nudged him with her shoulder.  “Yeah, there is something kinda nice about being in your shirt, Ulquiorra’s or Obscuras’,” she said with a chuckle.  “I think in my mind your persona is always going to be a half a degree different from you, although I don’t find myself struggling with this idea…  I dunno I guess I’m taking it in stride pretty well. Although when I realized it was you in the practice room I was in hard denial until you started with _Hallelujah_.”

 

He shook his head. “I don’t even know why I sang that. It was stupid. It just goes to show how much of an emo bastard I am.”

 

“I have a decent idea.  I don’t think you’re an emo bastard.  You’re a talented artist. My heart broke listening to you.  I just wanted to reach through the screen and hug you and give you pat pats and tell you everything was going to be okay,” she said, blushing as she reached out for his hand.

 

“Really? It took me singing Hallelujah to break your heart? I know I made you cry with how it sounded.”

 

“Well, you’ve broken my heart before, but this time was different… This time didn’t make me think of myself at all.  Only of you.”

 

Ulquiorra raised an eyebrow. “How?”

 

“How?  It’s hard to say.  You just sounded very hurt.  It sounded personal. I thought you were singing about Nel; about how your relationship with her was confusing and hurting you.  It felt very raw and, god. Just remembering it,” she stopped speaking as her eyes misted over again. She squeezed his hand. “I’m sorry if I misinterpreted it but regardless, it was a really wonderful performance.”

 

“I was stressing about stuff. A lot has happened this week,” Ulquiorra said. He cleared his throat. “Did you order the food? I could go down to the lobby and wait for the delivery people.”

  
“I did. They’ll call when they get here,” she said, unopposed to his subtle attempt to change the subject.  “Anyway, you’d let a strange girl stay alone in your room the same day you met her? You’re trusting,” she teased, trying to lift the mood.

 

Ulquiorra looked at her before rolling his eyes dramatically. “You’re the one who called yourself a strange girl, not me. I know you… in a manner of speaking. You steal anything and I would hunt you down. I mean as long as you leave my guitar alone and my laptop, it’s fine.” he stated.

 

She laughed at him, then looked to the side.  This was going really well. Really well… It was kind of intimidating if she thought about it too much.  She was doing the thing she always did with guys she really liked and was just giving him carte blanche to her feelings too.  She twisted her mouth to the side. Maybe she ought to be more cautious. If things went south with him, she wouldn’t have him to fall back on to talk to.  He was her one constant companion these past couple years… It would devastate her to lose him. She sighed without meaning to.

 

He had heard that sigh many times throughout his life. It was a sigh that most females did. “What?” he said looking at her, his mouth pulled down at the corners.

 

“I was just arguing with myself,” she said, pulling her knees up to her chest.  “I am kind of a leap before you look person… I am just trying to remember not to get ahead of myself.  My impulse control can be sometimes lacking.”

 

“I’m definitely a think it over and then think some more type person. I had to take things into account but when I removed the biggest obstacle, there was a lot less to think about,” he commented. “Don’t worry about impulse control. I have infinite amounts of it, it seems.”

 

She smiled in spite of herself, then rested her cheek on her knees and turned her face toward him.  “Complementary personalities?”

 

“What was that one song from the eighties? Was it the nineties? My dad used to play it when he was working in his bakery. Something about opposites attract or whatever.”

 

“Paula Abdul.   _Opposites Attract_.  I know it,” she said in a lazy way, her cheek still smushed into her knee.

 

He raised his brows slightly and peered at her. Something felt off or something wasn’t quite right. What had changed? “You’re going to sit there and tell me not to bullshit you but you can’t be straight with me?”

 

“I’m straight with you, I’m just trying not to chase you away.  I really like you and I’m trying to calm the fuck down about it,” she admitted with a cringing expression.  “I am so very uncool.”

 

He wanted to tell her the same thing but he didn’t. He knew he wanted to jump headfirst into this situation but on the other hand, he didn’t. It was a weird feeling. “Uh, same,” Ulquiorra said. “I mean we know each other online. The real-life thing kind of… I don’t know… I’m a weird and introverted person.”

 

She grinned at that.  “I’m kind of relieved, to be honest.  It would suck if you were way cooler than me.”

 

“I know I’m a loser,” he said with a smirk.

 

“You are not,” she said, leaning in and kissing him softly, letting her lips linger on his for a few seconds and then pulling away.

 

“No, come back here.” Ulquiorra threaded his fingers into her hair and pulled her back to him. He liked this feeling. He wanted to feel more of it. He wanted to touch her. He wanted to keep her beside him. When he pulled away after running out of air, he stared at Orihime. “I’ve never felt this much interest in another person. You’ve made me curious.”

 

She smiled and bit her lip.  “Well, here’s hoping it lasts,” she said before leaning in for another one.  She kissed him with three little pecks before grazing his bottom lip with her teeth and then letting go.  “I could do this all day.”

 

“What just talk to me or kiss me?” He asked returning the gesture.

 

“Both,” she kissed him.  “Either,” she kissed him again.  Then she sat back and fanned at her cheeks, laughing at herself.

 

Ulquiorra’s mouth twitched several times. He was fighting off another smile. “Maybe one of these days we can hang out all day. What, uh, classes do you have on Monday?”

 

“Let me think… last Monday was off.  I have music theory at ten and then speech with you and then interpersonal comm at what.. Four?  There is a like a half-hour between speech and that class. That’s my last one that day.”

 

His brows shot up. He was in another class with her? Ulquiorra squinted for a moment. “Uh, what time does music theory end? You’re kind of stuck with me for the rest of the day. I’ve got Interpersonal Comm after speech.”

 

“Oh?  No way!  Theory ends at 11:30.  What else do you have on Monday?”

 

“I have Speech and the other class. I can sleep in on Mondays. Tuesdays I have English and then a music class,” he answered.

 

“Same.  I have Professor Pervert at eleven and piano at one and then I’m done.”

 

“Wednesday?” he asked hopefully. Ulquiorra’s face automatically dropped. “Fuck. I have algebra with Nel on Wednesday. It’s pretty much a clear day because after that all I have is that webinar thing at seven.”

 

“Let me see,” she said, pulling out her calendar on her phone.  It was too much to keep track of in her mind. “Music theory at ten again, Professor McFeely at three, and Chamber Choir at four-thirty.  I feel compelled to let you know that I am supposed to have practice in the practice room at least ninety minutes per day. But hey, if you ever want a place to jam without worrying about the noise, you can always join me.”

 

He shrugged. “I have taken it upon myself to practice six or more hours a week on my instruments. I know that music takes dedication,” he said. Was Ulquiorra actually comparing their schedules so that he could actually spend time with Orihime? “Thursday looks like Tuesday and Friday looks like Monday. I’ve got nothing on Saturday or Sunday. We always have Instagram.”

 

“Thursday is my lazy day.  I have English with you and that’s it.  Friday I have music theory again but this time only for an hour at ten and then speech with you at two.  What are we doing?”

 

“Not sure? Coordinating efforts to maximize our time together?”

 

“Very good, very good Johnson.  I expect to see those mid-quarter reports on my desk by Monday,” she said, laughing, then squealed a “Whoops!” as her phone rang, surprising her.  

 

“Hello?  Yep, someone will be right down.  Yeah, uh, Cifer. Thanks,” she said and hung up her phone. “That was the Chinese food guy.  He’s in the lobby. Do you want me to come with, or…?”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “You’re a dork. No, because if you come down then you’d have to put a bra back on. I don’t want that. I’m enjoying the view,” he said getting up. He put on a new t-shirt and put a pair of flip flops on his feet. It was only a matter of grabbing his wallet. “Do I need to take my phone or keys?”

 

“I promise to open the door for you when you come back and there is no way in hell I’m touching your phone.  It’s like a vibrator, it buzzes so much. It makes me scared,” she teased.

 

“Hmmm, dork.” He leaned down to peck her lips before he grabbed some money out of his wallet. “I’ll be back. If anyone knocks on the door, don’t let them in.”

 

With that Ulquiorra went out into the hall, making sure the door was shut behind him. It didn’t take him long to ride the elevator down to the lobby. The guy delivering the food said his name wrong but for once, Ulquiorra didn’t mind. As he took the bags from the guy and telling him to keep the change, the dark-haired male had things to think about.

 

He knew who Vega was now and surprisingly his interest in her was not dwindling. It didn’t seem like the short woman’s attention towards him was fake. Vega had always been sincere. They had kissed. He’d touched her. It didn’t feel like they had crossed a line like he and Nel had done. Why? Did he trust Orihime/Vega more than he trusted Nel? He bit his lip as he waited for the elevator.

 

Orihime sat on the bed where Ulquiorra had left her, bobbing her feet up and down awkwardly as her eyes took in the space.  There was really not much to look at. He had left his closet open to show a row of nondescript t-shirts and jackets. She decided to play with her phone and laid down on his bed, head on his pillow.

 

No one would know that she pushed her face into it and took a couple sniffs.  He did smell good.

 

She checked YouTube.  Nothing special. Instagram, nothing special.  Email, nothing special… wait, she still had the email he had sent to her and told her to disregard.  She had just left it unread. She opened it up.

 

A smile and a laugh.  He had pretty much repeated the information word for word, but wait!  What was… Oh for god’s sake. He had all of his ObscurasIV contact information at the bottom of the email.  She laughed out loud again. No wonder he didn’t want her to read it. Oh well, too little too late now.

 

She thought about his situation.  He was handling disappointing Nel better than she had anticipated he would, not that she had a lot of time to think about it.  Still, she was surprised, and a little worried that it would come back to kick him in the ass later. Oh well, one step at a time, she thought.

 

She looked down at herself in his t-shirt.  The writing on the front really drew attention to her breasts, and the soft fabric did nothing to hide her nipples.  She smirked, bringing her fingers up to them and stimulating them to peak firmness. If he wanted to see them she’d make sure there was something for him to look at when he returned.

 

The entire trip downstairs took him less than five minutes. Ulquiorra knocked on his door and waited. For it being a Saturday night, the dorm wasn’t busy. People were probably out partying or studying. “Veggs?”

 

“That you?” her voice came through the door as she put a hand on the doorknob.

 

“Nope, it’s just someone who took some Polyjuice potion. Of course, it’s me,” Ulquiorra said. “Let me in. I have food.”

 

She looked down at herself, straightening up her posture, checking that her nips were still on display, then opened the door.  She knew she was shameless and she really didn’t care as she smiled at him.

 

“Guh,” he said, staring at her. Usually, when he evaluated females he would glance at their bodies before looking hard at their face, studying them the way a scientist would glance at a specimen. He started at Orihime’s feet but soon as he got to her chest, Ulquiorra’s brain lost the will to function properly. “You, uh… Are you cold? Because you’re going to poke some midget’s eyes out with those.” He came into the room and put the bags on his desk.

 

“That’s exactly what they’re there for, midget protection. Who’s the dork now?” she said, rolling her eyes.  “That smells good.”

 

Ulquiorra grinned for a moment. “You know, we could forget all about the food. Get back to doing what we were doing. But you are right, it does smell good.”

 

“It’s not an easy decision, but the Chinese food is only hot and fresh once,” she said, raising a sly brow at him.  Yes, she was flirting pretty hard. She felt it was safe, given the overwhelming allure of sesame chicken.

 

He had to agree with her. “Hot and fresh food over a hot, young woman. Hmmm.” Ulquiorra turned and started unpacking the containers in the bag. “So earlier you said you liked Weezer. Why? What’s the appeal?”

 

“I love 90’s alt-rock, but the grungiest stuff is sometimes a little too gritty and sad for my aesthetic.  Rivers Cuomo writes perfect little songs. They are almost always short. And even when they aren’t they drive steady and building all the way home.  I mean, have you ever listened to _Only in Dreams_ in the dark with headphones on?”  she shivered. “It’s bliss. Also, there is a kind of humor there that I get with some of their other songs. _The Good Life_ always makes me laugh, but it’s not just funny.  It’s a great self-motivation song for when you’re feeling like you’ve lost something.”

 

“I’ve only listened to a handful of Weezer songs. If I had to pick a 90’s band that I feel on a spiritual level it would be either Nirvana or Placebo.” Ulquiorra handed her a container of rice and the disposable forks that came with the food. “Unplugged is a favorite of mine.”

 

Orihime tilted her head and nodded, unsurprised at his choices.  “I could have guessed, I think, based on your repertoire and vocal aesthetic.  And what is this, no chopsticks?! Racist Chinese guy,” she laughed. “Speaking of, I think the only thing I don’t love about early Weezer is the Japanese exoticism…  I’m glad I don’t look very Japanese because I’ve seen the way guys treat my roommate; she’s Asian and she definitely looks it. Luckily for her, she’s a badass, but she’s told me stories.  Some guys are total pigs.”

 

Ulquiorra looked in the bag he had brought up. The only thing inside of it was another container of chicken. “To be fair, it’s probably easier for college kids to stab things with forks rather than chase them around with chopsticks,” he commented. “And don’t worry, I would never disrespect you.”

 

“I wasn’t worried,” she said, throwing a grin in his direction before opening up the box labeled “SN”.  “Oh my god, this smells amazing! Do you want some?”

 

“What is it? And is it hot? Like spicy?”

 

“It’s Singapore Noodles, and it’s thin rice noodles with egg and shrimp and some vegetables and curry seasoning.   It’s not saucy, and it’s mildly spicy. Not very.”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. He had an aversion to spicy things. While Nel loved spicy international dishes, she would tell him that they weren’t very spicy only for it to feel like he ingested fire. “I’m kind of a wuss when it comes to spicy stuff.”

 

“Oh, well, maybe have a smell and if you still think it’s a no, then more for me, I guess,” she said, a goofy half-smile on her face.  She didn’t want him to miss out but if he didn’t like spice, he didn’t like spice. She didn’t have a stake in it either way. “I still get a bite of chicken though, right?” she asked hopefully.

 

He had opened his container and looked at her noodles. They did look good. He held his dish out to her before reaching for the one she held. He took a small amount of noodles and a snow pea onto his fork and sniffed at the contents. It didn’t seem that bad. “You wouldn’t lie to me, would you? Nel would pull that shit. _It’s not hot._ I’d end up dying on the floor or something.”  

 

“No!” she looked horrified at the idea.  “I mean, I can’t speak for your spice tolerance but I wouldn’t try to hurt you.  I don’t think it’s spicy. I don’t eat what I would consider very spicy food.”

 

A black eyebrow lifted before Ulquiorra gingerly put the fork into his mouth. He chewed for a moment before he took the container of noodles over to his bed and sat down with his back against the wall. “These are good, what’re you gonna eat?”

 

She raised a brow at him and tsked.  “You gonna steal my-- I guess you paid for it it’s yours.  I’ll just beg for scraps I suppose.”

 

“I’m joking,” he said before patting the space beside him. “Come sit down. I know how to share some things.”

 

She sat beside him and balanced the containers of chicken and rice on her stockinged leg, then stabbed a piece of chicken and brought it to her mouth.  “This is decent too. Nice first date, Ulquiorra. Sorry, I don’t mind if you call me Vega or Veggs but I can’t call you _Obscuras_. It’s too much of a mouthful,” she said with an apologetic chuckle.  

 

“It’s okay. It is a mouthful. Vega is nice and short. Just don’t shorten my name to Ulqui,” he stated with an eyeroll. “I just call you that because I’m so used to it.”

 

“I’m not just saying it to please you, I really don’t mind if you say that; it feels natural.  And Ulqui? Really? Sorry, that sounds… awful. Ulquiorra is a great name. Ulq, I can see. Quiorra in a stretch, but Ulqui?  It sounds like the name you’d give an alien creature.”

 

He had to laugh at that. “Ulq is fine. No Quiorra or Quiqui or Ulqui. It was fine when I was four or five years old but not anymore. I’ve had other commenters call me Obs but that seems really strange on the tongue, you know? There are people that shorten my screen name to O4 or OIV. The point is to call me whatever you feel comfortable with.”

 

“Well, I feel comfortable calling you by your actual name.  Or Hot Shot. We’ll see if you earn anything else,” she stopped one side of her lip curling up.  “Actually I can think of a couple of other names for you, but we might save those for later.”

 

“Oh? Now you’ve really piqued my curiosity.” Ulquiorra leaned his head over and gently placed a kiss on her temple. After he did that he felt kind of embarrassed. It was surprising how easy it was to show emotions to Orihime and how relaxed he felt. He would have never invited Nel to sit beside him. “Sorry. How can I earn these names?”

 

“Don’t be sorry,” she said in a very quiet, sweet voice.  She cleared her throat. “Anyway, you have already earned the names, I just need to feel at liberty to say them.  I guess I could call you Handsome, but I’m sure you get that one a lot.”

 

He nodded with a slight frown. “It's amazing how shallow people can be on Instagram. I show my body and I’ve got bitches drooling over me. Not you but other people that I’ve never exchanged a word with. I’ve got companies soliciting me. I’ve got people telling me I could be a model and they’ve never seen my face. Handsome is overrated anyway.”

 

“That’s easy for you to say, you _are_ handsome,” she said as if she were discussing the weather. “Unattractive people would disagree that it’s overrated,”  she said, her own mouth twisting into a frown.

 

He was going to argue with her because all throughout high school all he heard was how much of a loser he was. How pale he was. How freakish he looked. Ulquiorra stabbed a piece of chicken out of the container Orihime had. “People used to call me Ugly-orra,” he said before biting the piece of meat.

 

“People are blind,” she said, reaching over his elbow and snagging some of the noodles out of the dish he held.  “I was pretty chubby when I was in junior high school and the beginning of high school, so I can relate to the name-calling.”

 

He had to refrain from eyeing her body again. “Really? I think you look great. You probably looked great back then.” He fell silent taking several bites. “Screw what other people think, right?”

 

“Yeah, I guess.  I didn’t look great back then though. I never get to forget it either,” she sighed.  She hated them, but if things progressed like she anticipated they would, he’d find out sooner than later.  She set the containers to the side and unzipped the zipper at the side of her skirt, pulling away the material to reveal the top of her hip.  There were several vertical, or diagonal, depending on how she was positioned, pale streaks visible on her skin. “See? It’s not a good look.”

 

Ulquiorra’s eyes went wide and his mouth seemed to dry up. There was a female unzipping her clothes for him. “Um, who would care about that? I don’t I mean-- I think you look great regardless. So what if you have some scarring or whatever.” Nel had been hung up on the same marks but they were around her breasts.

 

“They’re stretch marks,” she informed him.  “And _Paulo_ thought they were unfortunate.  He was the kindest about them.”

 

He reached out with a hand and ran his fingers over the marks with a feather-like touch. It felt like skin. “They’re proof you’ve matured,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“I suppose,” she said, smiling at his touch.  

 

“You should zip that back up. Sorry. I should have asked before I touched you.” Ulquiorra saw the smile on her face and pulled his hand away as if he had gotten burnt. Hadn’t he just said he wouldn’t disrespect her? Here he was touching her without permission.

 

“As a matter of principle I agree but on a case by case basis, there is some leeway.  In this case, it was welcomed,” she said, blushing as she zipped back up. “You surprise me, though, Ulquiorra.  I would have thought someone in your position would demand someone closer to perfection. I mean, as a friend I know you’re not like that, but you know…”

 

Ulquiorra once again gave the woman a skeptical look as if she were crazy. “I’m far from perfect so why would I expect it? I’m not putting unneeded pressure on someone,” he said. He sighed. “This is where that whole online is different from the real-life version of me. You’ve not experienced me. Give it a week or two and the shiny newness might wear off.”

 

She shook her head, “You think I’m dazzled by you, don’t you?  I hate to break it to you, but apart from your talent and your knowledge of how I think you’re just on the good-looking side of regular,” she said, glancing up at him and getting some more noodles.  “You forget that you’re also my reluctant English and speech partner. I’ve seen your evil ways, Cifer.”

 

“Oh, I’m evil?” he asked and handed Orihime his container. He got off the bed and stripped of his shirt again and lowered his sweats until they sat just at his hip bones. “I can show you how evil I can get.” He was flirting but unsure if he was being flirty or just a creep.

 

Her teeth sunk into her lower lip and her eyes followed his hands to his waistband.  “Yes, please,” she breathed, not really aware she was saying it out loud. She swallowed hard and her brain switched over to static mode.  “You might want to put these somewhere where they won’t tip over,” she said, her voice sounding disembodied.

 

He blushed and bit his lip. “Nope, remember? Chinese food is only good when it’s hot and fresh.”

 

She looked down at her lap and pouted.  “Why do you have to be right?” she whimpered.  She was joking and smiled at him with her eyes, but her belly was pissed off.

 

“You’re evil too,” Ulquiorra said as he returned to the bed. He really didn’t have an appetite now. Those feelings of desire had returned, setting in his veins. He took several stabs at the container of sesame chicken before he twisted around to put it on the desk. He took the container of noodles from Orihime too. “Screw it.”

 

Her eyes widened and her lips pulled up a bit.  She found his eyes with hers and her eyebrows rose in a questioning expression.  “I’m evil?”

 

“Yeah, you gave me the idea that if we ever met, it’d be more than just friends. You sent that photo which I really really liked and before we were interrupted… Kinda glad Nel walked in because I was going to lose my mind,” Ulquiorra said. He turned back to Orihime and pulled her into his lap. “Could chalk it up to Vanity Day.”

 

“Or,” she said, straddling his legs again and putting her hands on his shoulders, “it could just be that we like each other and this is fun,”  she said and kissed his nose.

 

Ulquiorra gave a shrug. Now that he knew that, he wouldn’t put too much thought into it. If it was just fun for her, he wouldn’t let himself overthink things. It was just some makeout session. “Might be,” he told her before planting his lips on her mouth.

 

She felt his mood shift.  He had shut down somehow. She pulled away.  “What was that?” she asked, her brows furrowed.

 

His eyes shifted from side to side. “What was what? It was a kiss,” he replied.

 

“No, it wasn’t like the others,” she said, not sure whether she was just imagining things or what.  “Just a second ago…” she sighed and looked to the side. She felt cold suddenly and put her right arm across her body, resting the hand on her left shoulder.  She felt like crying and she didn’t know why. “Did I do something wrong?”

  
“No, why?” Ulquiorra was becoming confused as to why Orihime was acting like this. First, she wanted him then she didn’t. “Did I do something wrong? I mean you said this was just for fun. It doesn’t take brain cells and emotion for fun.”

 

“That’s not what I meant,” she said, getting off of him and looking for her things.

 

“Your bra is on my desk,” he said. Ulquiorra knew he must have screwed up. She was uninterested at least. What had he done? He got off the bed and stood there in the middle of the room. “Keep the t-shirt. Do you--I can walk you back to your dorm.”

 

Orihime stopped what she was doing and stared at him.  Was he completely stupid? Her mouth opened and closed, and before she knew it tears were falling down her cheeks.  She wanted to disappear. She felt humiliated. “I-- I--” Her throat constricted and she couldn’t see what she was looking for.

 

Ulquiorra took a step back from Orihime. He knew from Nel that when women started crying they were upset and usually angry. He didn’t want to get hit or yelled at. “Veggs, c’mon. You said it was just for fun.”

 

“No, I didn’t!  I did not! I never said it was “ _just_ ” for fun.  I said it was fun.  I said we liked each other and it was fun.  If it was just me that’s fine but I can’t do that.”

 

“So you just make out with anyone and have no feelings for them?” Ulquiorra scowled.

 

“Are you listening to me?  That is the opposite of what I’m saying.  I am saying _I like you_.  If you don’t like me, I won’t hold it against you, but I can’t do this, then.”  Was he hard of hearing?

 

He scoffed. “Not like you? I practically offered to enter a relationship with you. All I heard was the word fun. It was like okay… Just...” Ulquiorra sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. “Sorry.”

 

She looked at him.  Well, she tried to look at him.  She couldn’t see him. She wiped her eyes with the sides of her wrists and tried again.  “Sorry for what?”

 

“I’m sorry for the misunderstanding. I’m an idiot.”

 

She took a deep breath and blew it out.  “Maybe we need to slow down,” she said, twisting her mouth and looking to the side. “I don’t want to leave like this and feel like things are weird now.  Did you want to watch something or listen to some music?”

 

Ulquiorra realized he’d screwed up. He gave a nod and then sat down in his desk chair. “Uh, we could watch a movie. The only ones I brought with me were Harry Potter ones. I didn’t know how much space I was going to have.”

 

“Pop it in, Ernie,” Orihime replied, sniffling but smiling, still standing in the middle of the room like an awkward rabbit.  That’s what she felt like, anyway.

 

He gave her a side-eye glance. “Any particular movie? Which one is your favorite? I like Prisoner of Azkaban, myself.”

 

“I have a proposal.  How about we start from the beginning and work our way through them.  If we can still stand each other by the time we get to the end, we’ll know…  Well, we’ll know something.”

 

That was a fair and logical proposal. “I hope you mean to do this over several weeks because I’m not one for pulling all-nighters,” Ulquiorra said with a slight grin. He rummaged around in one of the desk drawers for the DVD case he kept there. It was small and compact. It meant he could carry around the movies he really liked. He flipped through the sleeves and found the first movie and popped it into the DVD drive on the laptop. “Do you want to sit on the bed and watch it? The floor?”

 

She considered the floor.  Based on the awkwardness that they had just brought upon themselves it seemed the prudent choice.  However… “Let’s sit on the bed; that floor looks painful.”

 

Ulquiorra nodded and unplugged the laptop. He waited for her to get settled before he placed a pillow between them. She looked uncomfortable with the entire situation so he figured it would be best to create some space between them. He then sat down next to her. “Did you want your noodles while we watch? Or the chicken?”

 

“Uh, neither. I’m not hungry, I’ll stick with my water, thanks,” she answered.  She was trying to bring the mood back up and her voice was pleasant but she wasn’t going to pretend, either.

 

“Okay,” Ulquiorra said nothing else as he started the movie. This was what he was afraid of. Orihime would probably leave after the movie and block him on all forms of social media and then request that she get moved or placed with a different person. He had misinterpreted things. That was normal. She told him it was normal. This entire thing was confusing and disorienting. He let his hand fall on the pillow. “Veggs, I really am sorry. Nel’s the only other person that I’ve kind of been with and for her, it was fun too. Anything that deals with her I remove myself from emotionally.”

 

“Okay, but I don’t know what your pitfalls are, so, you’re going to have to either write me a list or be a little flexible or we’re going to run into problems,” she said quietly, then looked at his hand on the pillow.  She pressed her lips together, considering her options, and then put her hand on his and turned her eyes to the screen.

 

He was kind of shocked that she took his hand but didn’t say anything. It was over two hours later and the movie credits were rolling. Ulquiorra hadn’t really moved from his spot. He closed the laptop and put it back on his desk before turning to the short female. “That was okay, wasn’t it?”

 

“Yeah, it was,” she said, “I always feel like that movie is Christmasy for some reason.”

 

“It has that one Christmas scene in it. That one channel always plays the H.P. movies during the holiday seasons. It’s not a Christmas movie,” Ulquiorra said going off on a tangent. He stopped short and realized how much of a nerd he sounded like. “So um, want me to walk you back? Or can I--?” He wanted to give her a goodnight kiss but with how he acted before he wasn’t sure she would accept it.

 

A smile slowly spread across her face.  She really loved the way his face lit up when he talked about something he had a passion for, even if it was Harry Potter.  “Can you what?” she asked gently, looking at him with the kind of unguarded affection that was free of expectation.

 

“Would it be okay to give you a goodnight kiss?”

 

She nodded.

 

And so he did, cupping her face and leaning closer to her. Ulquiorra closed his eyes as their lips touched, feeling that heat creep along his nerves again. “I’ll walk you back unless you’re going somewhere else,” he murmured, after breaking the kiss.

 

“Nope.  Thank you, for tonight,” she responded, blushing and leaning her cheek into one of his palms for a second, before pulling back and stretching her legs off the side of the bed.  “I look forward to the Chamber of Secrets,” she added, then looked at him and grinned. “Are you going to walk me all the way to the dorm? I have to warn you, the girls out front will talk,” she said with a growing smile.  “I don’t mind but you might.”

 

Ulquiorra gave a huff of laughter before he kissed her again. “We just agreed to take a seven-week breather. You don’t have to go back to the dorm. I mean… I’m getting ahead of myself. I will walk you back to the dorm and I will be a gentleman about it.”

 

She laughed.  “Wait wait wait wait wait.  Hold up a second. Do you— were you proposing a sleepover?  Because I don’t have my mani-pedi set but I could give you some killer nails if we plan this right,” she teased.

 

His cheeks colored slightly. “Next Friday, I’ll see you here and we’ll have pizza. I’ll pick up some fancy water for you. Maybe we can have a sleepover,” Ulquiorra said. “But just like that message you sent me… I don’t think we would sleep or do a spa day.”

 

Orihime sighed happily.  It was as if the misunderstanding they had earlier had been erased.  “You drive a hard bargain, Ulquiorra. It’s a date. Um, do you think…. Yeah, I better…  Could you turn around for a minute?” she asked, embarrassed, grabbing her bustier off his desk.

 

“Huh? Oh! Yeah,” he said his face getting redder. Ulquiorra turned his back to her then stood, looking for his own shirt he had flung somewhere earlier. After he was finished, he got a pair of socks and put those on along with his tennis shoes. “You done?”

 

“Yep,” she answered, folding her jacket over her arm.  She had put his t-shirt back on over it the underwear.

 

“Looks good,” he said grabbing his stuff and putting it into his pocket. He opened the door and waited for Orihime.

 

She walked to the door, and her sense of self-preservation kicked in as she looked both ways before stepping out into the hallway.  The coast was clear. No teal hair to be seen.

 

Ulquiorra locked his door and escorted the auburn-haired woman back to her dorm. He gave her another kiss. There were females whispering. He didn’t really care. “I’ll text you tomorrow,” he told her.

 

She gave him a hug, and murmured into his ear,  “Me too. Goodnight, Ulquiorra. Thanks again. Make sure you eat the Chinese; it may be best fresh and hot but it’s still very good after it’s been reheated,” she said and chuckled as she let go, realizing she sounded totally cheesy.

 

He had to refrain from pulling her back into the embrace. “Next time, I’ll eat it when it’s hot and fresh. Too bad we’re having pizza next week.” He turned and gave her a wave before jogging back to his own dorm.


	7. Hey, Jealousy

 

Orihime went back to her room after being dropped off by Ulquiorra and basically just shut down for about two minutes.  What a crazy day. It was unbelievable. She had played with _ObscurasIV_. She had made out with him. And not just a little, like halfway naked making out.  She had shown him “Bad Habit”. Shit. Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit. She really had no self control.

 

Not that she regretted anything.  She was on the fence about the taking it slow thing…  She knew it was for the best but she was so sexually frustrated.  Damn it. Well, maybe she should just take a shower and then hope Tatsuki would still be out when she was done, and then maybe she could add something to “Bad Habit” and go to bed.

 

Before she did that, though, she decided to go on Instagram.  One little message wouldn’t hurt.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Still your #1 fan, BTW._

_-Vega_

 

Ulquiorra knew who texted him before he even pulled the device out of his pocket. He had just left her. He tapped the notification with his thumb and then smiled at the message. Damn. She was too adorable and tempting.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Yeah? I’m your #1._

_I’ll call you once I’m back._

_< 3_

_-Ulq_

 

She was surprised to see those ellipses fade in and out right away after she sent her message.  Fuck the shower, she would wait for this, she thought, getting out of the bustier, skirt and tights and putting his t-shirt back on and getting into bed.  She brought her laptop with her just in case and waited. Oh, better let him know she’d be waiting.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_I’ll wait up._

_-O_

 

He practically ran back to Robinson Tower. He was antsy as he waited for the elevator. He unlocked the door to find Szayel sitting at his damn desk. “What the hell are you doing here?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

“This is my room too.” The pink-haired man looked at him and then sniffed. “If you’re going to be banging chicks in here, you need to let me know so I don’t walk into another display like that. By the way, I don’t know who the teal-haired bitch is but she’s bossy.”

 

“Tell me about it.”

 

Szayel’s mouth opened and then shut. His roommate laughed. “Don’t worry, I’ll be out of your hair in a few minutes. I’m just downloading some movies onto my laptop to take over to Nnoitra’s frat house. They have a data cap and I don’t want to hear the lecture again about burning through hundreds of gigs because he’s downloading games.”

 

“It’s cool. I’ve got to call--”

 

“No jerking off while I’m in the room.”

 

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes then flopped down on his bed. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and thumbed through his contacts, searching for the O’s. As soon as he got to Orihime’s name he changed her contact info to say Veggs. It was stupid and silly but she was much more than his annoying English and Speech partner.

 

“Hey,” he said when she picked up.

 

“Hey,” she answered. “Uneventful trip home?”

 

He nodded then felt dumb. She couldn’t see him. “Um, Szayel is here but he’s gonna be fucking off in a couple of minutes. You make it to your room okay?”

 

“Yep.  Tatsuki is still out.  I managed to get comfy while I waited.  How is Szayel as a roommate?” she asked, not sure what else to talk about.

 

“He’s hardly here but he says Nel’s a bitch,” Ulquiorra stated. “I can’t say he’s a bad guy. You said your roommate’s name was Tatti?”

 

She giggled.  “No, it’s Ta-tsu-ki.  Maybe it’s easier if you split it up as Tat-su-ki, I dunno, but the first way is the actual way.  It really doesn’t make much difference. She’s nice. She might be a lesbian, I’m not sure. I didn’t try to seduce her or anything so I have nothing to go on.”

 

“Szayel is gay. He told me this the day he moved in.”

 

“He’s not my type though,” Szayel said loud enough for Orihime to hear.

 

“See?”

 

“Psssht.  You’re everyone’s type,” she said with a smile on her lips.  “Okay, maybe this time I’m trying to flatter you.”

 

He scoffed. “I’m not everyone’s type,” Ulquiorra stated. “I’m barely your type. You like confident, mysterious internet men.”

 

“I will have you know that I have a very wide strike range, Mr. Cifer!  My Venn Diagram of dateable people includes large swaths of unobtainables - you know, celebrities and homosexual men - cute, hot, ugly-hot, men, women… I’m more of a throw a wide net and then toss out the rejects kind of person.  But when I find what I like I just cut the whole rest of the net free.”

 

He had a stupid grin on his face now. “So I must fall in with the ugly--Wait did you say women?”

 

“Bye, Ulquiorra. Remember to think of something more discreet than a sock on a doorknob the next time you get it on with Tits McGee.” Szayel said, walking out the door.

 

The green-eyed man rolled his eyes. “Anyway Veggs, you were saying?”

 

“You were asking.  What were you asking?  I got distracted by the Tits McGee thing.”

 

“You said something about women. You’re not… you know? Are you one of those women who is experimenting with a guy?”

 

“No. No, I’m not experimenting.  Some of my first experiences with another person were with a girl.  I mean, we were probably too young to be doing it but we were exploring and I dunno… It didn’t feel especially weird.  I haven’t had a girlfriend or anything. I’ve kissed girls since then, but it wasn’t like a thing. My only real relationships have been with men.”

 

Ulquiorra did that slow nod thing again. “Ah, okay. So, you wanted to know things about me. Before I came to college I considered myself asexual. It was because of Nel. I didn’t want to have anything to do with her but went along with it because I don’t want to hear her bitch. It’s annoying. But...” he paused. “You’re the one person I’ve been interested in for a couple of years. I’m not sure what to call it but I wanted you tonight.”

 

She exhaled sharply, and he could hear her breath blow over her receiver a couple of times before she snuffled a laugh and asked, “So are you trying to tell me you’re Vegasexual?”

 

“Yeah, maybe, unless she’s mocking me.” Ulquiorra had to laugh. “Vegasexual. I could get behind that. Wait, how about Orisexual?”

 

She laughed out loud then. “They both sound somewhat dirty.  I’m not mocking you. I wanted you tonight, too. But I think we were right to give it a little time, so thanks Nel.”

 

He sighed. “Yeah, thanks Nel. Okay so, we’ve got six more weeks. I don’t want you to feel tied down or whatever. It’s just a date; me and you once a week.”

 

She shook her head, not that he could see it.  “I don’t work that way. Also, a side note for technicality, we’ve got six more _movies_.  For now, we’re set for watching the next one in a week but what if we want to watch one on a Wednesday and then another on the following Saturday?  We have options is all I’m saying. Anyway, about being tied down… I don’t feel that way if I’m interested in you.”

 

“Yeah, but I screwed up tonight. I’m just saying, leave your options open?” Ulquiorra looked at the ceiling and sighed. “This is my first time doing this. I have no fucking clue what to do. My thing with Nel was not healthy like you pointed out. It probably wasn’t the right way to go about a relationship.”

 

“I feel pretty confident in telling you that you are right, it was both unhealthy and not the right way.  I don’t think either of you are really to blame for that though…At first, anyway. I mean, my first relationship was a lot smoother than yours but it was built on a lot of misplaced assumptions and I dunno… thinking things were fine until they weren’t.  Inexperience makes you not question certain things. So even though you might feel like you don’t have experience, you do. It’s just now you know some things that aren’t good. You still have the good things to experience.”

 

Ulquiorra knew she was speaking sound advice to him. He knew that she was only telling him this because she cared about him. “Okay, anything else you want me to tell you or you want to ask?”

 

“Um, was it just because I was first?  I mean, I know that it’s a sweet sentiment but I mean, did I do anything that caught your attention?”

 

“You gave me advice on how to improve. You didn’t tell me it was great. You actually explained what I could do to better my performance. No one else has done that. It’s the same way on Instagram,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Okay, your turn.  Question?”

 

“Virgin or no?”

 

“No.”

 

That was fair. He should have expected it. Orihime was attractive. She had a nice body. He, on the other hand, was a stick in the mud. “Okay, your turn.”

 

“Does that bother you?”

 

“Eh, kinda and then kinda not,” he replied. “It probably happened before you met me or even started talking to me.”

 

Orihime paused.  She felt a sick sensation in her gut.  “Sorry, I, uh… I mean I had a boyfriend in high school and things escalated quickly and then he left and then I realized that what I thought was love was just hormones.  It was a rude awakening, but it wasn’t because I was out looking to get laid or anything. I just really thought he was _the one_.”

 

Ulquiorra realized what she was saying. It was the guy she had ignored him for. “It’s cool. Uh, What’s your true opinion of _Obscuras IV_ now? The whole package?”

 

He might be the actual one, she thought, and smiled before answering, “He is pretty special.  I think he can do anything he wants. I think he’ll be a successful music producer or cytologist or Harry Potter Museum docent or spice tester.  I think if he wants to he can be big. I think he is an excellent kisser.”

 

“Hmmm,” Ulquiorra hummed. He liked the confidence boost she was giving him.

 

“You want me to go on?”

 

“Nah, it’s nice to hear people recognize my talents.”

 

“You’re also funny and sweet and cute and sometimes furiously frustrating but I can deal with that in doses,” she laughed.

 

“You’ll get tired of it eventually when you realize that’s who I am,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Maybe, maybe not.  You’ve only seen the patient, non-real time side of me until this week.  You haven’t seen my bad side either. You may want to revert to asexuality after you’ve seen that, you know.”

 

Another laugh left him. “What’s with the bad habit thing? I mean why is it called that? Do you own all that stuff in those pictures?”

 

“Uhhhhh…. Yes,” she said, clearly ashamed of herself.  “I have more that I haven’t photographed. It’s like an addiction.  I get a confidence boost from it. I’ve been… hard up for a while.”

 

“Really?” Ulquiorra’s tone was surprised. He had to calm himself down. “How long?”

 

“... Um, about a year?”

 

He bit his lip. That encouraged him for some reason. “We could watch Chamber of Secrets on Monday,” Ulquiorra murmured into the phone.

 

“We’ll see…” she nearly purred back.  “So, you’re into the lingerie. Should I… nevermind,” she said, chuckling.  She had a one-track mind sometimes.

 

“Yes, you should,” Ulquiorra said. He didn’t know what he was agreeing to but he wanted it. “Maybe I could, I don’t know, send you some pics in return?”

 

“Oh?  More than what you’ve already given the masses on Instagram? Also, you refused the Bad Habit pics.  Are you retracting your rejection?”

 

“I cannot show my ass on Instagram, Veggs,” Ulquiorra replied. He brought the phone away from his face and opened the camera app, snapping a selfie of himself. His eyes widened at the image staring back at him. No wonder those other chicks were whispering. Quickly before he could back out, he sent the image to Orihime.

 

“What’s this...  OOPS. Sorry about that,” she said, looking at the angry-looking hickey on his neck.  “Well, sorry not sorry but you know…”

 

“I was gonna send you a different picture but, it is what it is. Yes, I’m retracting my rejection of the Bad Habit gallery.”

 

“Hmmm,  this is going into a new gallery.  Imma call it “trophies”. Anyway, four…let’s pick some good ones, I’m putting you on speaker for a minute.  There. So I’m going through… Any particular one strike your fancy?”

 

Ulquiorra paused for a moment. She was going to--? “Wait a minute. You realize what I’m going to do with them, right?”

 

“I should hope so,” she responded. “I mean, that’s what Orisexuals do, right?  I hope you realize what girls worldwide are doing with you IG post right now.”

 

He snorted with laughter again, the sound echoing in the room. “No, they’re not but, uh, I liked the teal one, The pale pink lace one. There was also a black cage bra or something that looked like it? It had undies with it. Oh and the white bustier thing.”

 

“Okay, I got ‘em.  It’s like Pokemon, gotta catch ‘em all… eventually.  Coming your way,” she said, sending the pictures to his phone.

 

“Hnnngh,” he said as the images popped up onto his screen. Ulquiorra licked his lips and then cleared his throat. “Okay, you can request one picture of me.”

 

“Well, we don’t want to intimidate me too much, so how about for starters, just your pretty face smiling at me?”

 

She wanted a smiling pic of him? What the hell? “I don’t smile in photos. It looks weird.”

 

“Lies.  You already sent me a smile.  It’s a panty-dropper. I just want your eyes, too.”

 

He hauled himself to a sitting position on his bed and then turned on the desk lamp. Ulquiorra could feel his face getting hot. He opened the camera app again, then flipped the camera so that it faced him. He did more than just take a picture for her. He filmed his face breaking out into a genuine smile. At the end of the video, he bit his bottom lip and looked away from his phone before he stopped the capture. “Sent,” he finally said to her.

 

“Okay,” she said, inhaling slowly as she tapped the message notification.  “Ooh, a vid--” she stopped short as she watched the video. “Aww…” she breathed, before a whine escaped her nostrils.  Some heavy nasal breathing followed as she replayed the video. Finally, she said in a low, quiet voice, “Be glad you’re in a different building or you would not be getting any sleep tonight.”

 

“You say that like it’s a threat,” he teased. “One more request and then I’ll let you go so you can actually sleep.”

 

“Really?  Okay… ummm… Oh, no… it’s too embarrassing.  Um….” she paused to deliberate. “Okay, how about an aerial shot of your face and abs?”

 

He had an inkling of what she was going to ask. “I’m putting you on speaker. I need to take clothes off.” Ulquiorra didn’t waste any time before he was standing in his dorm room, naked. It felt kind of thrilling. It felt kind of naughty. It felt freeing to do this.

 

Laying back down on the bed, the green-eyed male took a deep breath and aimed the camera at his abs and just the beginning of his trimmed pubic hair. His face heated up as he sent it to her. “There.”

 

She smiled as she tapped the message and then nearly dropped the phone onto her chest.  “Oh! Oh, that is a, um, pleasant surprise. Carpet matches the drapes, I see,” she stumbled awkwardly as she stared at the picture.  “Um, I… I can’t believe how close I was to that today and blew it,” she admitted, then laughed a few times.

 

“Yeah, well you didn’t get to see it. I’m sure you felt it though.” Ulquiorra paused. “I could show you.”

 

She closed her eyes and whimpered at the memory.  “Yeah?”

 

“It’s only fair. I mean I did get to see your chest. It’s up to you though. I’m asking.”

 

“If you want to show me, I want to see it.”

 

This time even his ears turned red. How did normal guys just take pics of their dicks and send them off to random chicks on the internet? How did that happen? He moved the phone to the side and looked at the thing in question. “Okay,” he whispered. He had to take several deep breaths before actually taking the photo. His knees felt weak and those butterflies were in his stomach again.

 

The message popped up on her screen and she tapped on it.  “Fuck,” she whispered. Her breath came out in a fast breath and she rasped another in quickly.  “Fuck me,” she whispered again, in an expressive way, not as a command. “Jesus Christ, that is a majestic cock,” she breathed, then took shallow breaths, waiting for him to say something.

 

“My dick is not majestic. It’s a thing that’s there,” Ulquiorra said. “I mean I felt the same way when you sent that pic of the red bra.”

 

“Well,” she said breathlessly, “I’m glad that we’ve established that there is mutual attraction at work here.  Jesus, is this… Fuck.”

 

“Something wrong?” Ulquiorra pushed against the side of his face with his hand, trying not to let anxiety get the best of him. It sounded like she liked it but—no. Vega wouldn’t lead him on. “I’m a virgin,” he said in a quiet voice.

 

“Nothing is wrong, this is…” she sighed and smiled.  “This is impressive. And I don’t mind that you’re a virgin; I think maybe most people our age are.”

 

Ulquiorra had to swallow. “Maybe we should have a movie marathon this weekend,” he said after a few minutes of silence between them. “I want to do that but I also want to take this slow because you’re Vega and I don’t want to lose what we have.”

 

She hummed happily and laughed a bit.  “I think you and I need to spend some time together.  I mean I am not an expert, and if it happens…. well I’m not going to complain because, hnngh,” she whined, looking at the pic again. “But you’re right, _Vega_ and _Obscuras_ have too much history…”. She trailed off and sighed in resignation. “I’m going to just call a spade a spade, is that okay with you?”

 

“Sure,” he said.

 

“I care about _Obscuras_ more than anyone in real life.  You’ve been my one person I can always talk to or rely on for the past two years.  I know we’re both kind of different online but it’s still you. I still know you; I do and I don’t.”  She paused and swallowed before continuing, “I think we can have a good thing between us, and I know we have chemistry. I am a little worried about you losing interest after… you know.  It would really suck if we rushed into something and then you decided you didn’t want it and things got awkward…” she sighed. “I want it though. Bad.”

 

“Okay,” he said. So she did care about him. She did like him. “Um, may I offer a proposal then? We keep our flirting and other couple-like behavior to our online lives and then it’s all business in real life. We’re still partners for those classes.”

 

What?!  Shit. She knew honesty was a bad idea, and she couldn’t censor the soft, shocked gasp that came out of her throat when she opened her mouth.  “If that’s what you want to do, it’s fine, but… I mean I can try to behave… I’ve never…”

 

Fuck. He’d screwed things up again. “No, that’s not what I meant… I don’t know what I meant. I guess I’m saying we could put it out there that we’re a couple online.”

 

Oh.  Oh, that’s different.  “Are you asking me to be your internet girlfriend?” She said, a tentative smile in her voice.

 

When she put it like that it made his words seem lame. “Yeah?”

 

She grinned, blushing brightly and sighed.  She took a selfie like that and sent it to him.  “I accept your proposal,” she said, cringing at herself for being so lame.  “I apologize in advance for my lack of cool. Check your messages.”

 

“Hah,” he laughed. Ulquiorra shook his head, his mouth stretching into a wide grin. “Absolutely no chill there. I like it.” He yawned unexpectedly. “Hey, uh, talk to you tomorrow? See you tomorrow?”

 

“Mmhmm.  Oh, Ulquiorra?”

 

“What Orihime?”

 

“You’re cute.  I like you in real life, too.”

 

“Same.”

 

***

 

Sunday morning was spent with Ulquiorra practicing his guitar. He didn’t turn on his phone until he left the room to take a jog around campus. Now that he knew where Orihime was at it would be nothing to take a stroll by her dorm. He would have done so had he not ran into Nel.

 

“Where’s the chick?”

 

“Huh?” he asked turning around to face his friend.

 

“You know the busty thot that was on you last night? Who is she?” Nel asked. She stood there in her workout gear with her arms folded under her impressive chest. “You could have told me that you weren’t interested in me.”

 

“I’ve literally done that like countless times. You don’t listen.” Ulquiorra turned around determined to make it out of the lobby. “You need to move on, Nel.”

 

He heard her scoff behind him. “That slut is just using you. She doesn’t know you as I do,” Nel said.

 

Ulquiorra almost stopped walking. She had no clue what she was talking about. Nel had no clue who she was talking about. “Really? I can bet fifty bucks that you’re projecting.”

 

“Projecting,” she screeched as soon as they were outside the dorm. “I am not projecting. Who is she?”

 

“Nel, I don’t have to tell you. You’re my friend, nothing else.”

 

“What’s gonna happen when Vega finds out you’re making out with random fangirls?”

 

He pivoted and stared at the teal-haired female. “Excuse me? What if that was Vega?”

 

Nel’s face became guarded. The corners of her mouth pulled down. “I knew you two had something going on--”

 

“FYI, that wasn’t Vega. You’ll know when it’s Vega. I’ll invite you to meet her while I’m balls deep in her.” Ulquiorra glared at Nel. He needed her to get the hint. “Go find someone Nel. Go fuck that guy with the blue hair. Hang up whatever torch you have for me.”

 

***

 

Orihime woke up a little late on Sunday, and didn’t initially remember what had happened the night before.  As it came back to her, she was convinced it was a dream. How funny… her brain conflated her English partner for _Obscur_ \-- wait.   She pulled out her phone and checked her messages.

 

“Oh. My. God!” she squealed as she looked at the first picture in her photo library, a picture of herself grinning like an idiot, and the one next to it, _Obscuras_ ’-- No, Ulquiorra’s dick.  

 

“What?”

 

“Huh?”

 

“What are you whining about sleeping beauty?”  Tatsuki asked.

 

“Um… I never went to that party last night… I kind of, um, made out with my new internet boyfriend,” she admitted and then screamed into her pillow.

 

“Hold on a sec, Hime.  How does that work? Do you like, feel yourself up and then make kissy faces on FaceTime?”

 

“No!  I went over with that Michelle girl to Robinson and he lives there and he met me in the lobby and that sorry bint ditched me so I went up to his room and we made out and got Chinese and watched Harry Potter and oh my god it was the best first date ever but now all we want to do is fuck but we also want to wait so we’re doing this weird internet thing.” She paused to suck in a dramatic, loud breath, “and I don’t know exactly what it means but he is also my partner for English and Speech and he is so cute and sexy and oh my god, Tatsuki, I am so fucking horny right now.”

 

“HA HA HA HA HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!” the roommate laughed.  “Welcome to Truthville, population: one . You know, there are things you can do to take care of your little problem.”

 

Orihime glared over the side of her bed at Tatsuki.  “Thanks, I know.”

 

“Just sayin’.  Do you want to get some food?  It’s almost ten-thirty. We could go over to the coffee place by the gym and then go do some circuits?”

 

“Yeah, okay.  Just give me ten minutes,” Orihime said, sending Ulquiorra an Instagram message before getting out of bed.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Good morning <3_

 

***

 

He was sitting inside that coffee shop, sipping from a paper cup. The toffee flavored coffee was a treat for him. Ulquiorra felt like shit for saying what he said to Nel but dammit, she needed to drop it. She needed to realize he wasn’t interested in her. She needed to do exactly as Orihime said and move on. There were people practically clamoring to be around her; why did she stick beside him?

 

He almost texted her an apology but stopped once he saw he had a message. Orihime could have texted him but she still used Instagram.

 

The message brought a slight blush to his cheeks. He had to roll his eyes at himself. He was acting like some schoolgirl.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Morning <3_   
_What’re you up to?_

 

Orihime got the message as she and her roommate left her building.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_On my way to the gym.  Stopping for a bite and coffee first.  You?_

She was on her way to the gym? Ulquiorra wondered if she was going to be at the same one as yesterday. How many gyms were scattered around campus?

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Uh, I’ve already practiced my guitar._

_Fought with Nel_

_I’m drinking coffee right now._

 

He sent a photo of himself staring at the camera over the cup. There was a slight smirk on his face.

 

Orihime felt her phone buzz and pulled up his message.  She made a vague, longing vocalization.

 

“Cute?  Looks better than cute to me,” Tatsuki said, glancing over her shoulder at the message with picture. “Who’s Nel?

 

“Er,  she is.. Ugh, how to explain?  Basically, an ex who doesn’t know it yet?” Orihime answered, keeping the message open so she could reply.

 

“Ew, no thanks.  I don’t do guys with crazy girlfriends or ex-girlfriends,” she said with a scoff.

 

Well, there went Orihime’s lesbian theory.  “I’ve known this guy a long time. She was never technically his girlfriend… it’s complicated.”

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Sounds productive :)_

_...I am almost afraid to ask but how did it go with Nel?_

_My roommate snuck a peek at your pic.  She thinks you’re hot. Don’t get any ideas though, XD_

 

“Hey Tatsuki, wanna send a pic with me?”

 

“Yeah, I don’t care,” Tatsuki said, leaning over so that her head angled slightly and touched the side of Orihime’s, curled her lips and threw up some horns like Billy Idol.  “Ready,” she said in a goofy voice through that expression.

 

It made Orihime laugh, and she took a picture as that laughing face was directed at the camera. She sent the pic with a message.

 

_Miss you._

 

He gave a snort of laughter as the picture popped up. Ulquiorra kept smiling like an idiot.

 

**ObscurasIV**

_Miss you too._

_I’m at the coffee place by the gym._

_Don’t worry about me getting ideas on your friend._

_Too butch for my taste. I’d get confused as to who wears the pants._

_JK._

 

She walked in the door of the coffee place as she read the message and her eyes popped up, scanning the place.  She thought she saw the back of his head, but she wasn’t sure.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Turn around._

 

He did so and about fell out of the chair he was sitting in. Ulquiorra’s eyes went wide as he saw the same person he had made out with and sent his first dick pic to. A slow smile spread over his face for just a moment before he got a hold of himself. It wouldn’t be cool to spazz out.

 

Standing up, Ulquiorra grabbed his cup and his phone then walked over to the two women. “Hey,” he said.

 

“Hi!” she said, grinning at him and not caring if she looked dumb or not.  “What are you drinking?” she asked, giving him a half hug to prevent knocking his coffee out of his hand.

 

“Uh, I got regular coffee with toffee syrup. Is this Tats?” Ulquiorra asked looking at the other short woman.

 

“Oh, sorry, yeah. Ulquiorra, this is my roommate, Tatsuki.  Tatsuki, this is my, um, _internet boyfriend,_ Ulquiorra,” she said, giggling and smiling like a fool. “I kind of called you that this morning and she gave me a hard time.  See? He’s real!” she said, making a sour face at Tatsuki.

 

“Hi,” Tatsuki said to him before laughing at her roommate.

 

Ulquiorra gave Tatsuki a nod. “The term internet boyfriend kind of seems misleading. I mean--I’m real but we’re trying to keep it online for a moment.”

 

“Ya’ll are weird,” Tatsuki said, giving the pair some side-eye.  “You know what, I’m going to skip breakfast and do weights. No need to hurl on the mats.  I’ll see you later, Hime. Nice meeting you, _IB_ ,” Tatsuki said as she turned and left the other two alone.

 

“Oh, bye…” Orihime said, her voice trailing off after Tatsuki left abruptly.  

 

He raised an eyebrow at Orihime’s roommate’s exit but didn’t say anything. “Did you want something for breakfast?”

 

She laughed awkwardly.  “Yeah, I was going to get a banana or a green smoothie or something,” she said, slowly getting into line, hoping he’d follow.

 

He did, standing right next to her. “So, uh, how did last night go?”

 

“You mean after I got home?”

 

“I mean after our phone conversation.”

 

She bit her lip and blushed. “It, uh… went.  You?”

 

He mimicked her action then added a nod. “Same. I slept good though.”

 

Some hummed laughter followed.  “So, um, I take it things with Nel were not like, knock-down drag-out… I don’t see any bruising;  any new bruising, I mean.”

 

“It wasn’t that bad. I mean I told her what I thought of her and that was that. I told her to fuck off in so many words.”

 

“How do you feel now?”

 

He shifted his stance a bit. “Surprisingly, I feel better. I don’t feel as bogged down. I mean, what I said to Nel wasn’t nice. I was an asshole to her.”

 

Orihime lifted her brows and looked at him with a knowing nod.  “There probably wasn’t any way around that. I’m glad you feel better now, though,” she said, leaning into his arm slightly and then leaning back.  He said to keep things online, but it was hard to be this close and not touch him. She was testing the waters.

 

They weren’t kissing, so this was okay. It wasn’t a big deal. He put one arm around her shoulders, and shuffled forward with her when the line moved. “I basically said I’d invite her up when I fucked you. It wasn’t polite. I’d never do that,” he said to her, whispering the words into her ear.

 

She shivered slightly at the proximity and then considered his words.  “I’m glad; she might take you up on it otherwise. You never know. I may be a performer but I’m not an exhibitionist,” she responded, then blushed again.

 

Ulquiorra felt that movement go through her body. It was barely detectable but it felt like she had vibrated in his arms. He let out a slow breath before taking a sip of his coffee. “I was thinking of putting another pic on Instagram today...One of us… Not of our faces but like just us hugging or something. It might stop the thirsty bitches from sliding into my DMs.”

 

“I think it’s a good idea.  It won’t stop all of them, but hopefully it will slow it down.  I’d like it,” she admitted freely.

 

“Like what? Me rawing you or taking the photo?” he said with a chuckle. Ulquiorra straightened up and licked his lips. This was why things needed to stay online. As soon as Vega came into the picture all he thought about was being with her in some way. “Sorry.”

 

She looked up at him with dark eyes.  “Not sorry,” she said, her eyes falling down to his lips.

 

“Next!”

 

“Oh!  That’s me,” she said, blinking away her lustier thoughts and going to the register to order a banana and hot lemon water.

 

Ulquiorra paid for her stuff and ordered a muffin for himself. He normally didn’t eat in the morning. “It doesn’t seem like your roomie likes me.”

 

“Oh, she likes you fine.  She wouldn’t have left us alone if she got a prickly vibe from you.  She’s playing matchmaker. We were supposed to work out together.”

 

“I keep messing your plans up. If you want to go work out with her you can. I need to finish reading that Shakespeare thing,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“You didn’t mess anything up. I’ll let you get back to Billy Shakes in a little bit.  I have to practice later. But I’m glad we ran into each other. It turns out I like you just as much today as I did last night.”

 

His face felt hot. “I was gonna run by your dorm after I was done reading which would have been this afternoon.”

 

“Muffin guy?”

 

Ulquiorra tore his attention away from Orihime for a moment to grab the lemon poppyseed muffin wrapped in parchment paper. He stepped to the side and waited for Orihime to get her stuff. “Why did you pick Albertson?”

 

“My aunt did.  She wanted me to stay in Minneapolis or go to Julliard like she did; either way she would have kept her claws in me.  I wanted to get out from under her thumb. Albertson was a compromise. Apparently, you can’t get pregnant at an all girls’ dorm.” Snide laughter followed that statement before Orihime leaned in a bit and spoke for Ulquiorra’s ears only, “Little does she know I took care of that potential problem years ago.”

 

His eyebrows raised in question. “Meaning? You got on birth control to lose your virginity to that fuckface?” he asked. Ulquiorra frowned. This feeling of envy wasn’t one he was used to.

 

She pulled back, her eyebrows raised in surprise.  His words had stung a little. “Well, I wasn’t going to let him knock me up; I was not quite seventeen.  I wasn’t planning on following him to Brazil.”

 

“Oh,” he said. Now he felt like an ass. “I thought it was some local guy.”

 

“Does that make a difference?”

 

“Kinda. I mean when you go back home for break, he’s not going to be hanging around,” the dark-haired male said.

 

That sentiment tugged the corners of her lips up a bit.  He was looking that far into the future with her? “I get it,” she said, tucking some hair behind her ear and grinning at her banana.  “Thanks for breakfast, by the way.”

 

Ulquiorra gave her a lopsided smile. “C’mon let's go find a place to sit; we can talk, makeout, or you can have some of this muffin.”

 

“Lead the way,” she said, grabbing his hand after sticking her banana in her purse.

 

He pulled her out of the coffee shop and walked across the grassy area to a huge tree that sat by itself, throwing shade against the nearby building. It was early September; by October the leaves would be gone. Ulquiorra found a nice looking spot and sat down, patting his lap. He didn’t think Orihime would sit there but it was worth a shot.

 

She raised an eyebrow at him and then shook her head once and took the seat he had offered.  “You’re becoming my favorite piece of furniture,” she mumbled, settling in and peeling her banana.

 

“You say that like you mind. I don’t care if you sit on me.” Ulquiorra had unwrapped his muffin and was trying to concentrate on that rather than what Orihime was doing. He knew as soon as he saw that banana go into her mouth he would think of other things… Inappropriate things. “On Monday you want to meet somewhere and we’ll have lunch then do our classes or do you want to meet at the Speech room?” Ulquiorra asked before picking off a piece of the muffin and taking a bite.

 

“Ooh, yeah, let’s have lunch!” she said, bringing the banana to her lips.  She almost took a bite but then just rested the end of it against her lower lip as she fell into thought.  “I’ll be in the Fine Arts building in the morning so I can meet you at the end of the bridge or something on my way back,” she said, finally slipping the pale yellow fruit into her mouth.

 

His head swung to the side so he didn’t have to watch her. He’d witnessed Nel eat a banana countless times and never, ever got turned on by it. “Is that across the river? I have no clue where my electronic music class is,” Ulquiorra stated.

 

“Yeah, it’s in the same building that the practice rooms were in.  I can give you a tour, if you want. Want some banana?” she offered, holding up the offensive fruit.

 

Ulquiorra leaned forward and took a bite of the fruit before he held a piece of the muffin to Orihime’s mouth. After he had chewed and swallowed the banana, he said, “I mean most of my classes are on lower campus. They’ll probably continue to be there unless I decide what the hell I’m doing.”

 

“What’s the rush?  You have to do your GEs anyway.  Get them out of the way, take a few exploratory courses.  You’re supposed to be figuring out who you are here. I mean, those of us who are able to choose for themselves,” she breathed a heavy sigh, and leaned back against his chest. “I wish… I mean, I’m grateful for the education I have.  I _love_ music. I just feel like I never had a choice, you know?  And now that I’ve come so far, it seems like a waste to throw it all away.”

 

“You know, my mom wants me to go into a more practical field like medicine or cytology. My dad says to do whatever makes me happy but I’m not sure what makes me happy at this point,” Ulquiorra sighed. “I know I like music but my mom, she is a music executive. She produces albums.”

 

“That’s mainly wheeling and dealing, isn’t it?” she asked, holding up the last third of the banana.

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. He’d been picking apart the muffin and not really eating it. “Kind of but she’s constantly on the lookout for talent too. She says I don’t have the aptitude to be a musician.”

 

“Pffft.  There is more than one way to be a successful musician.  Not everyone has recording contracts,” she said, tipping her face back to smile at him.

 

Staring at her mouth, Ulquiorra bent his head forward so that he could brush his mouth against hers. “I think I’m already a successful musician. I’ve got all those subscribers on Youtube and all those crazy followers on Instagram.”

 

“Exhibit A is in your lap,” she said, giggling.  “If you monetized, would it change her mind?”

 

“Unless I am singing my own songs, I’ll never put ads on my videos. It’s not my work. All I’m doing is--I’m not good enough for that.” Ulquiorra sighed. “It’s not like my mom matters. She’s in Cali and I’ve been stuck in Ohio since I was young.”

 

“Yeah, what’s the deal with that?  You mentioned your dad had a boyfriend.  Has he been there since you moved here?”

 

“Dunno, I was four when I moved back? Maybe younger? I remember my dad taking out Nel’s mom and us being stuck with a babysitter,” Ulquiorra replied. “Then Steve just showed up. He’s an alright guy but has a knack for getting dramatic and breaking up with my dad.”

 

“That’s not easy on a kid.  Makes me almost glad my aunt was a spinster with nothing to do except micromanage me.  Anyway, do you feel like Steve is a parental figure or just Dad’s boyfriend?”

 

Ulquiorra looked up at the leaves of the tree and thought about the question. Steve had been a nice stand-in when his father had to work and couldn’t do things. “Nah. I made sure Steve knew he wasn’t a parental figure. The guy knew when to offer his infinite wisdom and when to shut up.”

 

She laughed a bit.  “It’s good to have boundaries. When you left after our practice session you said you’d been ignoring a parent.  Your mom?”

 

He nodded. “I try not to talk to her. She doesn’t make an effort to be in my life so why should I make an effort to be in hers?”

 

“I suppose.  The world of parents is kind of foreign to me so I can’t really say anything based on that relationship, but if people avoid me I usually return the favor.”  She finished the banana and took a sip on her hot water before folding up the peel and setting it aside.

 

“My dad was decent. He tried but running his own business took a lot of time. I don’t hold that against him.”

 

“As I’d expect.  You’re usually an independent person, from what I know of our chats online.  Only one person seemed to suck that away from you. I imagine you admire your dad, don’t you?”

 

“Kind of,” Ulquiorra said. He shifted his legs for a moment. “Eh, it’s more like I admire his work ethic and his determination. He wants to make things work for him.”

 

Orihime smiled. “Admiring someone for their innate qualities and efforts is more loving than doing it for their successes.  It sounds like you have a nice relationship with him. Do you need me to move?”

 

He shook his head. He was shifting his legs because he didn’t want certain things to poke her. “No, you’re okay. You’re a lot lighter than Nel.”

 

“I should hope so, I’m significantly shorter than her.  She’s also more muscular than me. I really hope she doesn’t try to kick my ass.  Speaking of that… what kind of selfie do you want to take together? We could do it right here.”

 

Ulquiorra brought up his phone and tapped on the camera. “A kissing one. I’ll crop it until it just shows our noses,” he said.

 

“Ok, I feel like I should have worn something cuter or at least, you know, cleaned up a little better, but I’m feeling this idea.  How do you wanna do it?”

 

He turned his head slightly and lined the camera up then he turned back to Orihime. “Just kiss me,” he said.

 

She smiled and leaned in for it, not stopping until a good ten seconds after she was sure he was done taking pictures, then rested her head against the side of his jaw.  “Alright, let’s see them.”

 

Ulquiorra bit his lip before kissing her again. “This is going to be hard, to separate business from pleasure, you know,” he said to her.

 

“I hope that you never separate them…  Okay maybe for schoolwork,” she said. “Come on, let’s see!  I want to see how we look together!”

 

“I can see which one of us doesn’t have any patience,” he stated before he tapped open his photo gallery. He felt kind of embarrassed because there were a lot of photos of him just sitting there. Then, of course, there were the images she had sent last night that he had saved and not to mention his dick just standing proudly at attention. Ulquiorra groaned before selecting the photos they just took. “Here.”

 

She stared in silence at first.  She couldn’t believe how...happy she looked.  How happy he looked. “Can you send me this before you crop it?”

 

A nod from the green-eyed male. “Any other pic requests?” Ulquiorra nodded as he sent the photo she indicated.

 

“How about just a regular selfie?” she said, taking her own phone out and holding it in front of them, but not pressing the button until she had his permission.

 

“I don’t mind,” he answered. “But, no posting it anywhere. I’m sure there will be a day that my face is revealed. I want it to be on my terms.”

 

“I know.  This is for me and my silly, sentimental heart,” she said, reaching her free hand up and behind his head and pulling it down toward hers a bit.  She laughed at the slightly surprised face he made and took one picture, then waited until their faces were side by side and their eyes were focused on the lens to take another one.  “Thank you,” she said and pecked him on the cheek, then set her phone aside.

 

He blushed. He never had been thanked for just taking a picture with someone. Ulquiorra had never allowed Nel to take photos with him either. What the hell made Orihime, aka _Vega,_ so damn irresistible? Using his fingers he moved a lock of hair away from her neck then kissed the skin. “You’re welcome,” he said before he picked up his phone.

 

It was a boring process, but it only took a minute to crop the picture they had taken and clean it up. “How is this?” he asked handing the phone back to her.

 

“I gotta say, we look pretty damn cute.  Fire when ready,” she said. She was honestly excited for the reaction they were going to have.  A small, petty part of her was gleeful to break hearts. But more than anything, she was just happy that he was acknowledging their connection.

 

Bringing up the popular social media app was another tap of his thumb. Ulquiorra picked the photo and then added the caption: _With the Woman @Vega.Strife00. #breakfast #itwashealthy #coffee #bedhead #gonnaworkoutlater_

 

Ulquiorra had to smirk and shake his head. “You wanna do the honors?”

 

“Oh yeah,” she said, a hungry grin on her lips as she brought a finger up to his screen.

 

Once the picture showed up, he had to take a deep breath. “Fuck,” he said. “We did it but… Now, Nel’s gonna know you’re close by. I don’t think she’ll do anything but run if you see her?”

 

She flashed the whites of her eyes and nodded.  Nel already hated her; there was nothing she could do about that.  Besides, Orihime wasn’t one to roll over and die, but she had a healthy sense of self-preservation.  “Will do. Run away from green-haired Amazons.”

 

He cackled. “She would kick your ass if she heard you say that.” Ulquiorra’s voice took on a rather nasal quality because he was going to mock the shit out of his friend. “It’s called seafoam teal with mint highlights.”

 

“Woooow,” Orihime said, in false appreciation.  “I was unaware that Crayola had come out with a line of hair color products.  I mean, I’ve been looking everywhere for some burnt sienna or cinnamon stick hair dye.  Maybe I should look that stuff up.” She chuckled a bit and then stopped. It wasn’t nice for her to act this way. Surely when Nel saw this she would be hurt.  Regardless of how much she may deserve it or how much she had brought this on herself, Orihime felt bad making fun of her.

 

“Oh, so you’re not really a redhead?”

 

“Actually my natural hair color is showing right now, I haven’t dyed my hair in several months.  The top two and a half inches is natural. The rest has been dyed for shows and things. I’ll wear a wig for a huge color change - I’ve never been a blonde or had blue-black hair like yours - but a bit darker or redder is not that big of a deal.  My natural hair is kind of a darkish, reddish brown that sun bleaches a bit toward a redder color.

 

“I guess I should ask if the carpet matches the drapes.” Ulquiorra smirked at her. He was going to say something else but his phone started buzzing.

 

Orihime was quiet while he started looking at the response. After a minute or so, she asked, “So?  What’s the damage?”

 

Ulquiorra shrugged. “There’s already a hundred comments and they’re mostly emojis. Some congrats, sad faces. Gamuza liked it. Of course, she did. Oh, she commented.” He handed the phone to Orihime so she could see.

 

“Wow.  It’s more positive than I thought it’d be.  Why would she like it? To act like she’s cool? She’s not going to try to be my friend now, is she?”

 

Another shrug. The words his friend had put down were just the generic, “ _Hope you’re happy together_.” He knew Nel and she hardly ever showed anyone kindness unless they absolutely deserved it. “I was really expecting more bitchy remarks from her,” he confessed.

 

A slow hiss escaped Orihime’s teeth.  “I don’t know Nel very well, but I know girls very well.  If she’s acting nice about this now, she’s probably saving something worse for later.  I hope I’m wrong, though.”

 

He huffed. “I don’t deal with jealous people, although I can be that way at times. I know, double standard. I’m not going to let Nel get to me. You’ve been more than a friend since you commented the first time. You’ve gone above and beyond friendship. Nel’s done nothing to be a friend ever since we kissed.”

 

Orihime nodded.  Some of what he was saying was raising red flags, but it could just as easily be due to the stress he would undoubtedly be facing by going up against Nel after all these years of strained friendship.  It could make anybody talk big. She let it slide off her back. “Well, let’s not compare me to the girl you think of as a screwed up sister, it gives me the creeps, okay?” she asked with a shaky laugh.  “Anyway, I am on your side. She has not been a good friend to you. But try to keep in mind that she’s hurt and she is used to getting her way. She’s not going to give up control that easily. I’m sure both of us expect that,” she said, her own phone starting to buzz.  “Here it comes, I’m sure,” she said, then squinted and pressed the notifications in an overdramatic display of caution.

 

She was quiet at first as she read.  “Well, she certainly doesn’t like me.  Blocked. The rest of your fans are a bit more gracious, mostly.”

 

“What did she say?” Ulquiorra asked, putting his chin on her shoulder. “It was bad enough that you blocked her?”

 

She had not yet actually blocked her and showed him the messages that were still incoming.  

 

** Gamuza3 **

_Bitch.  #bedhead?  Are you fucking serious?  What a slut._

_You only want him to get attention._

_You’re just a lonely loser who can’t stand that he was happy with me._

_You’ll never be able to satisfy him._

_He’ll never love you as much as he loves me.  He’s just confused._

_…_

 

There were more messages on the way, apparently.

  
“Looks like she really hopes we’re happy, huh?”

 

For fuck's sakes. “Dammit Nel. She’s not allowed to get jealous!”

 

“Well, it looks like she did not and does not care about how you feel or the boundaries that you set under any circumstances,” Orihime said, trying not to react in an emotional way.  And honestly, she wasn’t. Sure it was unnerving to have this woman she didn’t know come after her with her teeth bared, but at the end of the day, she really didn't have anything to do with it.  Nel had lost Ulquiorra long ago. No, she never had him to begin with. Both of them had been carrying on their bizarre relationship while laboring under false pretenses. He thought they were friends.  They weren’t. She thought they were meant to be together forever as lovers. They weren’t.

 

“Do you want me to say something?  I can just block her but if you want me to I’ll give her the business.”

 

“That’s up to you Babe,” Ulquiorra said, instantly sitting up. He did not like confrontation and didn’t liked to be pulled into it. Nel liked starting shit and that was exactly what she was doing. “Oh sorry. It’s up to you Orihime.”

 

“You can call me that if you want, I don’t mind,” she said, a bit distracted as she thought about what she might say.  As she deliberated, another message came through.

 

**Gamuza3**

_You think that picture of you and him is so fucking cute, don’t you?_

_I’ll post one with our faces.  I’ll post ones of us naked in bed together._

 

Oh, that was fucking it.  Nobody threatened her friend - internet boyfriend - make out partner - whatever.   She wasn’t going to let this bitch out him when he’d been so careful about protecting his identity.

 

** Vega.Strife00 **

_Don’t you fucking dare._

_You know how that would hurt him._

_He doesn’t want his face out there full stop._

_If you love him so much, you would never even consider doing something like that._

 

**Gamuza3**

_I had him first. I taught him everything he knows._

_Every kiss. Every touch is my doing._

_He’s been my friend forever._

_You’ve only been around a couple of years. Whore._

_You’ll get tired of him. He takes forever to get off. He’s gay or something._

_He might like tits or fingering me but it does nothing for him._

_Ask him about Friday night._

 

Orihime sighed as she read the response.  It was all so small and petty and ridiculous.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Seriously?  You think I care about that?_

_Clearly you have no idea, Nel._

_I don’t care if he is gay.  I actually take his feelings into consideration_

_I actually care about who he is as a person and what he wants_

_I’m not with him because I want to make him something he’s not._

_He’s a brilliant artist and I want to encourage him.  We like spending time together._

_I’m sorry things didn’t work out for you but it has nothing to do with me, so keep your weird shit to yourself._

**Gamuza3**

_Right because it looked that way last night._

_My roommate is Michelle, dumbass._

_She said you were just waiting for someone to screw you._

_That’s why she ditched your thirsty ass._

_Just enjoy the time you have with him._

_He’ll get tired of you too._

_Bitch._

 

Okay, the Michelle thing was fucking creepy.  How did the two of them make the connection between the Vega persona and Orihime?  She sure as hell wasn’t going to ask.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Well, if he gets tired of me, I’ll let him go, like a normal person instead of a crazy bitch who can’t take direct verbal messages to back the fuck off._

_You’re a predator, Nel._

_It’s creepy and wrong and violating._

_Get help._

 

** Gamuza3 **

_I’m not crazy. I care for Ulquiorra. He cares for me._

_He’s going to compare you to me all the time._

_I won’t be far from his thoughts._

_I’m going to leave him alone._

_I’m not creepy. I saw Ulq talking to you last night in the lobby._

_He’s a liar and said that whoever he was sucking lips with last night wasn’t Vega._

_Also, tell him I don’t want to watch his small dick try to fuck you._

_He might get lost in that black hole anyway._

 

Orihime laughed.  Hard. Very very hard.

 

**Vega.Strife00**

_Small dick?  What are you trying to compare him to, a horse?_

_Jesus, lady.  How big is your vag that his is unsatisfactory to you?_

_o.0_

_Wow.  I can’t even… wow._

_Good luck finding a guy to suit your special needs._

_And I don’t blame him for not telling you who I was.  I wouldn’t either if I had some psycho breathing down my neck._

**Gamuza3**

_Whatever. Just make sure I don’t catch you alone._

 

Ulquiorra had watched the exchange between Nel and Orihime. He finally sighed. “Block her. It’s--C’mon Orihime,” he said, fumbling for words. He had never been so hurt, embarrassed or humiliated by Nel.

 

“I’m sorry, I got carried away.  There. Done.” She blocked Nel while he watched.  “I’m really sorry; I should have just blocked her to begin with.”  Despite the majority of current concerns being about Ulquiorra’s poor reaction to what just happened, a decent amount of her worry was now for her own well-being, and her hands shook as she put the phone down.

 

“It’s okay just--Nel knows what makes people tick. She likes causing trouble,” Ulquiorra said as he buried his face into one of his hands. “I’m not gonna worry about it. I wanted to post the picture of us. I wanted to let the world know. At least I didn’t tag it with something like happy couple or something else that would have set her off more.”

 

“I really doubt that it would have made any difference,” Orihime said, looking at the grass past his knee.  “She already knew; she already saw us together. She’s just trying to scare me off.”

 

Ulquiorra’s brow furrowed. “Wait, what do you mean she already knew? You mean she saw us before she stormed into my room?”

 

“Yeah, didn’t you see that part?  She said she saw us in the lobby and “that Michelle girl” was her roommate.

 

“I didn’t see it. I was busy being angry at the fact that she still has those fucking pictures,” Ulquiorra said. “Then I was too busy feeling like I wanted to disappear.”

 

Orihime sighed and turned around to face him.  “I’m sorry. You don’t deserve this. I don’t want you to disappear.”  With a gentle finger under his chin she tilted his face up. “I know this sucks but it was never gonna be easy and I know that you’re going to be fine.  And I am sure she wouldn’t sink that low as to share those pictures. She was just trying to rile me up. Shame on me for rising to the bait.”

 

Orihime paused a second and then kissed his lips for a moment.  “The hardest part should be over, right?”

 

If Ulquiorra knew anything about Nel, he knew this was far from over. “I hope you’re right.”

 

“By the way, she told me to ask you about Friday.  Is there a story there or is she just stirring the pot?”

 

Fuck. Shaking his head, Ulquiorra shrugged. It really wasn’t any of Orihime’s business about what happened in his dorm room that night. Nel had been in his room Friday night and all that happened was that she got off by him fingering her. The green-eyed man had washed his hands several times that night, feeling dirty for some reason. “She’s just trying to start trouble. She was in my room Friday and then we got into a fight because of what she did.”

 

“What did she do?”

 

“She got into my Instagram account then commented on your video.” He sighed, still feeling uncomfortable.

 

Orihime frowned.  “Why would she think that is so scandalous?  I mean it’s not cool of her to do that but it seems odd for her to bring it up,” she responded.

 

“I don’t want to talk about her anymore. Just thinking about her pisses me off.”

 

“Okay,” Orihime said with a nod. She had no reason to press him further.


	8. 21 Questions

Orihime got to music theory class a couple of minutes early on Monday morning.  She had decided to forgo her standard grayscale wardrobe; going instead for some distressed jeans, a white t-shirt and a mustard-yellow cardigan.  She tied half of her hair back and wore large sunglasses. Just in case. She was still on the lookout for green foam or whatever the hell it was hair. 

 

She managed to arrive unscathed and said hi to Mizuiro and Keigo before class started.  Ninety minutes later she was done and lingering in the classroom.

 

“Don’t you have somewhere to be, Dollface?” Keigo asked.

 

Orihime rolled her eyes.  Who did he think he was, the guy from Casablanca?  “Yeah, I, just… uh… I’m waiting for someone.

 

“Yeah…  I heard about that.  You didn’t waste any time, according to that Michelle girl.  She showed up at Tier’s party and said you were too busy making out with some emo guy to show up.  So? Who’s the guy, Orihime?” Mizuiro asked.

 

Was her name really “That Michelle Girl”?  Everyone - okay Nel didn’t but she was abnormal to begin with - called her that.  “It’s not official yet, Mizuiro. I don’t want to say anything and then scare him off.”

 

“Well, aren’t you waiting for him?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Okay, then we’ll just hang out in the lobby like we were planning to anyway and see for ourselves,” Keigo cut in.  “Come on, Mizu”.

 

Orihime sighed as they left the room and checked her phone.  She didn’t want to wake Ulquiorra up if he was still sleeping.  He had been overwhelmed with the response that the picture he posted had caused, and truth be told she was feeling a bit guilty about it.  Yeah, it had been his idea but she had been all for it. She sighed again and sat on a desk with her feet on the adjacent chair and waited.

 

“Hey, you’re not in this class,” an unfamiliar male voice said.

 

“Huh?” Orihime looked up from her phone, surprised that she wasn’t alone.  “Oh, sorry, I was in the ten o’clock theory class… I didn’t know there was--”\

 

“Yeah music lit is at noon.  Doctor Finnegan doesn’t like anybody to show up late so I always come over after practice.  Ichigo Kurosaki. I’m a pianist,” the carrot-topped guy said, reaching his hand out to shake hers.  

 

“Oh, um, hi.  Orihime Inoue.  Soprano. Nice to meet you.”

 

“Ah, _you’re_ Claire Cartwright’s niece.  I heard you’re on the lookout for an accompanist.” 

 

Her expression perked up immediately.  “Yes!” she answered with a bit too much enthusiasm.  “Yes, um, I kind of fell behind with making connections and I haven’t found anyone yet.  Do you--?” she trailed off, not wanting to assume he was offering his own services.

 

“Yeah, well, I wasn’t going to do it, but apparently it’s a _requirement._   Bunch of bullshit, don’t you think?  Anyway, if I’m slumming it I may as well do it with someone who has a bit of clout, right?” he said, smiling at her with the kind of easy arrogance that someone who rarely hears the word “no” might do.  It was charming, actually. A little off-putting but still likeable. It made Orihime feel slightly uncomfortable. Still, she was desperate for an accompanist, and he was apparently the king of piano or whatever.  

 

“That would be fantastic.  When are you available for practice?” she replied after a bit, sidestepping the issue of clout.

 

“I’ll text you later.  I have my schedule on my laptop and only keep it in mind on a day by day basis.  Oh yeah, I heard you’re doing the Concert Class next month. Which pieces? I’ll look them over before we rehearse?” 

 

“Oh, yeah, thanks, that would be great.  I’m doing Brahms, _Dein Blaue Auge,_ Williams’ _Silent Noon,_ and _Come L'allodoletta_ ; the standard high voice repertoire versions.”

 

“Yeah, I know which ones you mean.  All the mezzos did them at Solo and Ensemble.  Why are you doing mezzo songs?”

 

“I’m doing _Silent Noon_ in the soprano arrangement.  Brahms is for high voice, but as for the other one, I have a decent mezzo range so I use it.”

 

“Fair enough.  What’s your number?”  

 

Without thinking, she handed him one of her business cards.  “What’s this?” he asked.

 

“Oh, sorry.  It’s my stage name, I do lounge acts for weddings and banquets.  We’re looking for a pianist for that, too, if you’re interested. It’s fun and they pay is decent.”

 

“I’ll think about it,” Ichigo replied, chuckling, as he called her phone.  It buzzed in her hand and she startled, thinking it might be Ulquiorra. She looked down at it confused that it was an unknown number.

 

“Okay, you have my number now.  You better get out of here before Doc Finnegan sees you.  See you around, Inoue.”

 

“Yeah, thanks Ichigo,” she said, somewhat confused, as she left the room.  Maybe that guy actually _was_ the king of the music department.  He sure acted like he owned the place.   She shook it off. Right. It was nearly noon.  She texted Ulquiorra.

 

  * You awake yet?



 

***

 

Ulquiorra was standing at the end of the footbridge with his arms crossed over his chest. If anyone saw him, they would have described the scene between him and a green-haired woman as tense. There were words thrown around. There were hand gestures made. He was actually getting angry.

 

“I told you I needed time. I didn’t specify what I needed time for,” Ulquiorra snapped. 

 

“I thought you meant for me!” Nel seethed. “Is that short little shit really Vega? Does she know that not even twenty-four hours before her I was in that bed?”

 

“Yes, that was Vega. She’s my English partner. She’s my speech partner. She’s my fucking girlfriend.” Ulquiorra stared at Nel with a hard expression. “You had no right DMing her. None. You humiliated me. Honestly Nel. It’s not her business what happened before Saturday.”

 

“Ugh, you--”

 

“Why should I have waited for you when you went and got dicked down by practically the entire football team? Or that one guy in your French class?” Ulquiorra asked interrupting her. Nel was right on the cusp of getting cut out of his life.

 

The woman sighed. “You said no.”

 

“I know I said no and this is the reason. You need to get yourself in check. You became someone who wasn’t Nel the moment someone else showed me attention!”

 

“But--”

 

He held a hand up, almost shoving it into her face. “No. No buts. Get out of my life. Vega and I are friends. We’re more than friends and if you cannot deal with that then I’m sorry.” He looked down as he got a text. “I have other obligations to attend to. Have a nice week.”

 

With that, he started walking across the footbridge while he texted Orihime.

 

  * Hey, I’ve been up since about 8am. Walking across the bridge now.



 

She read the message and exhaled.  If he’d been awake for that long and hadn’t contacted her there must have been something going on that had his attention, and it probably wasn’t anything pleasant.

 

  * I’ll come out and meet you.



 

She walked through the lobby of the Fine Arts building, ignoring Keigo’s whining about not being able to meet her boyfriend, and walked through the glass doors and up the path toward the bridge.  She spotted Ulquiorra and realized her fears were probably well-founded. He looked tense.

 

As soon as he saw Orihime, Ulquiorra tried to smooth over his features but it didn’t work so well. “Hey,” he said to her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

 

“Hi,” she responded, smiling up at him, still not used to the physical contact between them, but not at all displeased.  She slowly ran her hands up his arms to his shoulders. “Tough morning, huh?”

 

Ulquiorra didn’t say anything at first. He just continued to hold her. Five minutes passed before he actually spoke. “It was a great and productive day until about twenty minutes ago.”

 

“How did it go?” she asked.  Only one person made him this despondent.  She didn’t have to ask who. She squeezed his shoulders a little tighter for a second and then relaxed but made no move to pull away.

 

“Told her to get the fuck out of my life if she couldn’t handle us.”

 

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m proud of you.”

 

Ulquiorra sighed. Hearing her say that didn’t make him feel better. “I feel shitty for saying it because that’s how I’ve always felt when I say mean stuff to her. She makes me feel guilty. I hate it. Thank you though.”

 

“I know. It’s not easy. If it was easy you would have done it a long time ago.”  She stood on her tiptoes and gave him a proper hug. “If you want I can help you forget about it for awhile.  After class, we can play a game or watch TV or just do something mind-numbing for awhile.”

 

“Mmmm, maybe,” he said still somewhat distracted. 

 

“Maybe you should practice.  Maybe you should record.”

 

“I did that this morning. I got up at eight. I practiced my guitar. I recorded a new song. I ate. I had coffee. I took a shower.” Ulquiorra sighed, “I was walking over here and Nel--I ran into her.”

 

“Yeah. You need to record again.  Maybe not today, but no later than tomorrow.  You don’t have to post it. But you need to channel this…” she leaned back in his arms  and gestured to the space around his head, “whatever this is into something else. I have a few ideas, but I’m sure you’ve given this some thought already.”

 

“What’s your suggestion? Because the only songs going through my head at the moment are angry.”

 

“All the better.  Let’s go get something to eat and I’ll jot down my list, okay?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded and they started walking away from the Fine Arts Building. He was still fuming about the entire thing when Orihime tugged on his arm to get him to stop moving. “I might shut my YouTube and Instagram down,” he said looking at her.

 

She let go of his arm, looking taken aback. “I would suggest you don’t.  That’s two years of growth and work and progress that you’d be throwing away because the same manipulative bitch that always managed to find a way to fuck up your happiness did it again.  You’d be letting her win. Again. Ugh,” she said, shaking her head and continuing to walk. “If you did that I would take it personally. I’m taking it personally. I can’t help it. And you know what else?  So would the rest of your viewers. People take a lot of pleasure and comfort and inspiration from what you do. And you’d consider burning down the house because Nel told you you were a meanie?” she stopped and looked at him. She had pity in her eyes.  “I’m sorry. I’m angry at her. I can’t help it.”

 

He was kind of taken aback at her outburst and Ulquiorra stared at her with wide green eyes. Since day one Vega had been setting him straight. She had never pulled any punches nor had she sugarcoated her advice. She had always been straight with him. Just hearing the rant come from her actual mouth was a bit of an eye-opener for him.

 

Because…

 

She was absolutely right.  
  
He wanted to stop everything just because Nel made him unhappy. He didn’t get to explore many things because what if Nel didn’t like it. Ulquiorra frowned as he stood there and looked at his feet, chewing on his lip. “It’s fine. Don’t apologize. We’ve always been honest with each other, that shouldn’t change,” he said.

 

Orihime sighed.  “Still, I got overly emotional.  I… I don’t know if it came through online but I’ve always felt protective of you.  Now that all this is in my face it’s kind of triggering that response and making me… well, I’m trying not to lash out.  I don’t know how successful I’ve been.”

 

“It did sometimes. Other times I chalked it up to annoyance. You just did something though. You made me realize that I’ve never really done anything for myself. I’ve always felt I needed to consider Nel.” Ulquiorra glanced at the petite woman. He took three steps until he was standing in front of her. It was nothing to pick her up by the waist and kiss her. 

  

After he set her down, she had to blink a few times to get her head back on.  “Wow. What was that for?” she asked in a reedy voice.

 

“Because you’re you. You get me. You know what I need to hear to get me to take my head out of my ass,” Ulquiorra replied. “What? You don’t want me to kiss you?” 

 

She blushed and half of her face twisted up into a smile.  “You know I do. Shut up…” she said, embarrassed and looking to the side.  The other half of her face joined the smile and she looked back at him. She was so super uncool she couldn’t stand herself.  She couldn’t stop grinning. “I’m an idiot…” she sang quietly with a little trill at the end.

 

His eyebrow raised. “Why are you an idiot?” he sang back to her.

 

She laughed at that and her smile relaxed a bit.  “Because I let you fluster me without even trying.  I am tragically, terminally uncool in your presence.  I feel like the village idiot. I think I can’t be any lamer and then I do something to correct that idea, and the whole time it’s just like, hashtag sorrynotsorry.”

 

“Orihime,” Ulquiorra said, his mouth forming a thin line. “Shut up. You fluster me. I feel like a loser next to you. I keep putting my foot in my mouth and digging a hole. You’ve made me rethink how I do things. You challenged me to a point. You engaged me in a way that I’ve never had to deal with. You took me, someone who had little interest in anyone, and you made my heart grow bigger like the Grinch. I care about you. You’re almost everything to me at this point although… I mean it’s only been a few days but, ugh.. Like right now, all I want to do is talk you into skipping classes for the rest of the day so we can go back to my room.”

 

She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly through her nose.  “Okay, Hotshot, I’ll make you a deal. We get lunch. We go to class.  Then we go to _my_ room because no one you know lives there except Tats and she is doing something today.  And then we can get to know each other some more. No pressure. No expectations. Just doing homework and getting used to each other.  Deal?”

 

“I think I can do that. I can’t guarantee that we’ll do homework but we can try it,” he said.

 

She chuckled. “Like I said, no expectations.  No pressure. No expectation or pressure to behave, either.”

 

Ulquiorra smirked. “Are you sure that males are allowed in your dorm?”

 

“I see them there all the time, so I’d say yeah.”

 

He kissed her again. “Good. C’mon let’s get lunch and then to class. I finished Shakespeare by the way.”

 

“Oh?  What did you think?” she said, following him with her hand in his.  
  
“Dick jokes. How can anyone think he was a great writer?”

 

“Iambic pentameter.  Making up words from scratch and being unquestioned.  And a good dick joke…” she trailed off and sighed. “There is something really delightful about a good dick joke,” she said wistfully, then slowly rose her eyes toward his to see if he would catch that she was kidding.

 

His expression was passive. “Apparently Nel thinks I’m a good dick joke. Ugh. That’s not productive thinking.”

 

She smiled at him.  “Dude, it just happened.  It’s going to float in and out of mind, don’t worry about that.  And there is nothing funny about your… you know.”

 

“Tch,” he scoffed while rolling his eyes. “I just feel… Inadequate? That’s how she made me feel all the time. Like I was nothing.”

 

“That seemed to be her strategy.  Make you feel beneath her to keep you feeling like you had to please her.  She knew that without the need to get on her good side, she had nothing to tie you to her.  She wanted you under her thumb and that’s how she kept you there. That’s what made your relationship so toxic.  I hope she grows out of that, because it seems like people who do that just keep doing it to every person they meet.”

 

“I know. Enough about her. It pisses me off just to think about it. How was your morning so far?” Ulquiorra asked. He was tired of thinking about Nel although he had brought it up.

 

Her face lit up.  “Oh! Yeah, I forgot to tell you!  I got kind of distracted by your cute sad face.  Anyway, I found an accompanist! He might even do some lounge shows, and apparently he’s a really accomplished pianist, so I lucked out.”

 

He was impressed by this news. “Wow. I’m glad I passed on that gig. You got someone better,” he said teasing her.

 

“Pssht, you said you didn’t want to do it.  And you’re right, if you don’t enjoy that kind of music it would just be a chore.  And my drummer says this guy is the “King of the Music Department,” so hopefully it gives me a leg up.  He also knew the pieces I’m doing for Concert Class next month, which is a relief. That is giving me anxiety already.”

 

Ulquiorra glanced at Orihime. She sounded fed up with the path that was chosen for her. “Maybe in a couple weeks, you know, once we get settled we could record a song together. I could tag you or link you in the video.”

 

“Are you serious?  That would be amazing!” she said, squeezing his hand.  “My mind is racing already… so many songs we could do… It is going to be hard to pick one.”

 

That made him smile just a bit. Ulquiorra had a routine down. He already knew what songs he was going to sing for the next month. He had been practicing and refining the sound of them. Singing Hallelujah and doing the Gorillaz song for Orihime had been on the fly things because he already knew the songs so well. “This week’s song fits our situation perfectly,” he said.

 

“What is it?  Is it the one you recorded this morning?”

 

“Mmmhmm.” He unlocked his phone and then tapped on his photo album. There was a video saved as the newest item. “See. And I’m not telling you until I upload it. You have to wait.”

 

She groaned.  “Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine oh fine oh fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine.  When are you uploading it?”

 

“Maybe tomorrow, maybe Thursday. Those are the only two days I upload things,” he replied.

 

“Ugh, you’re killing me,” she said and smiled at him, letting go of his hand and trailing hers up to his elbow.  “So, what are you hungry for?” she asked, changing the subject to something that wouldn’t have her on pins and needles.

 

“Soup? Maybe a sandwich?” Ulquiorra shrugged. He had to play off the fact he was once again thinking inappropriate things. “There’s plenty of choices to pick from. What do you want?”

 

“I’m having a salad and if they have any some cantaloupe.  Really in the mood for some cantaloupe. Don’t know why.” She said.  She was getting hungry too.  

 

What she really wanted was dairy.  Cheese. Grilled cheese. Alas, cheese and other dairy products were verboten.  Not good for singers; triggered mucous production and affected the clarity of tone.  A sigh went through her nostrils. The lifestyle restrictions were a bummer sometimes.

 

“That sounds lame. Are you going to eat pizza if I get it on Friday? Should I order you a salad instead?” Ulquiorra asked. His mouth twisted to the side.

 

“I’ll throw down some pizza once in awhile.  Gotta be vigilant though. I’m still a fat girl on the inside,” she chuckled.

 

He rolled his eyes. “Whatever. You think I care about appearances?”

 

“I don’t know, do you?  And even if you don’t, other people do.  I’m a performer.”

 

“You’re missing the point. You look fine.”

 

“Thanks?  I try. You look better than fine, since we’re putting it out there,” she said with a twinkle in her eyes.  “I bet you roll out of bed looking like that.”

 

“Maybe one of these days you’ll find out.”

 

***

 

Speech class came and went and then Ulquiorra and Orihime had interpersonal communication class together, for which they were once again paired up for group assignments.  They figured out that the speech teacher was just really lazy and didn’t want to evaluate any student work so their “group work” would just be to write their speeches and presentations separately and then proofread each other’s work, then give the speeches to one another, and do an evaluation worksheet on themselves and their partner.  It was a total waste of time.  

 

Well, it wasn’t a waste of time for them, it was just another excuse to hang out.

 

Interpersonal communication class was going to be about half written and half speaking exercises.  They would be expected to conduct mock employment interviews, customer service scenarios, and most importantly, face to face, one-on-one meetings to discuss areas of conflict.  It was a class that was supposed to teach students how to deal with navigating complicated social situations on a personal level, either in-person or via email or other correspondence.  It seemed easy on the surface.

 

When class was over, Orihime got out of her chair and stretched out.  “Freedom!” she yawned.

 

Ulquiorra was still sitting with his face propped up with his palm. “No, we’ve got to do this all again tomorrow. It’s just freedom for a couple of hours,” he said.

 

“Listen here, Negative Nancy,” she began in an airy voice.  “We may not live until tomorrow so this may be the most freedom we have left,” she said, looking down at him with a grin.

 

“I doubt it. If the world didn’t end in 2012, it’s probably not going to end tonight. Well, Veggs, you want to go back to your dorm now?” Ulquiorra asked as he stood up.

 

“Yep,” she answered, keeping a casual exterior.

 

Ulquiorra grabbed his stuff and then put his arms around her shoulders. “Lead the way then. Maybe you could carry me, like a piggyback ride.”

 

“Pfft, try me, Hotshot.  I won’t get far in these shoes though.”

 

He had to smile at that. Ulquiorra let her go and then looked at the outfit she had on. “You seem so put together. Your style is refined.”

 

“Thank you.  My aunt instilled in me the idea that every minute of my time in public is an audition.  That’s why I can’t stand dressing like everyone else. It’s not because I think they don’t look good; they look just fine.  I just feel like it’s not allowed for me.”

 

He gave her a disgruntled look. “Once in a while is fine. Everyone deserves an off day, Orihime.” Ulquiorra said. “There was a time where I thought I had to be put together all the time.”

 

“Oh yeah?  What snapped you out of it?” she asked, leading the way out of the room.

 

“Nel. She thought I was trying to impress her. So I started dressing like everyone else. Jeans, t-shirts,” he commented. It was the truth. As soon as Nel mentioned how good he looked for her, he stopped caring about his appearance. “I mean I take care of myself but the only time I actually dress up is for functions.” 

 

“You look put together anyway; not like some of the yahoos that come to class in ripped jammy pants and stained t-shirts.”

 

He had seen those people. They were mostly jocks or people who didn’t care. He had some pride. “I don’t own anything torn. I will never wear pajama pants to class. I might wear my sweats but that’s only because I might workout that day. I don’t think anything of mine is stained. I’m OCD about that kind of stuff.”

 

“It’s good to be OCD about stuff like that.  I noticed your room was spic and span. Does the OCD expand to all corners of your life?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. “Unfortunately.”

 

“Well it can’t be that bad.  You let us eat Chinese on your bed, after all,” she murmured, nudging him with her shoulder.

 

He stared at her for a moment. “I felt like I could trust you not to drop any noodles on my blanket. Sometimes when I’m stressed out it gets worse.”

 

She nodded.  “Makes sense to me.  Well, be forewarned, my room is pretty clean but it’s not perfect.  I’m not perfect, so… ya know.”

 

“It’s not other people’s space that bothers me. Just my own, so it’s cool.”

 

“Alright.  If you--”

 

“Orihime!”

 

The auburn-haired woman turned around to where she thought she heard the voice.  “Keigo?”

 

Ulquiorra’s face went from passive to offended that someone was disrupting them. He looked at the brown-haired guy who had called out to Orihime. “Who is this?” he asked her quietly.

 

“My drummer.  He’s overly interested in who you are,” she murmured back in hushed tones until the offending character approached and she couldn’t keep her voice from Keigo’s ears anymore.  “What’s up, Keigo?”

 

“Oh, I just saw you walking along and thought I’d come introduce myself to your friend,” the other man said, looking at Orihime before bringing his eyes to meet Ulquiorra’s.  They were about the same height. “Keigo Asano. I play drums. How do you and Dollface know each other?” he asked, much too excited.

 

His offended look morphed into a scowl. Dollface? Who did this guy think he was? “I would have assumed your name was rude,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Oh, hahaha, this guy is funny.  That Michelle girl only said you were like a statue.  She’s an airhead. You know she bad-mouthed you at that party,” he said, looking at Orihime.  “I didn’t want to say anything in front of Miz but she wouldn’t shut up about it. Don’t worry though, I told everybody she was just a jealous troll.  She kind of looks like a troll doll, doesn’t she?” he laughed at himself and looked like he was going to just keep going.

 

“Orihime and I have been friends for a long time,” Ulquiorra said, cutting the other man’s laughter short. “That’s all you need to know.”

 

“Oh yeah, I get it.  Sure,” Keigo replied, nodding in a knowing way, but obviously having no clue. 

 

“Oh, Keigo, you’re not going to believe this,” Orihime said, just remembering what had happened earlier that day.  “I may have found us a pianist,” she said, tightening her grip on Ulquiorra’s elbow in her excitement.

 

“Who?”

 

“I’ll let you take one guess,” she said, tipping her head back slightly and looking at him like she was high and mighty.

 

“No.  No. No.  No way, Orihime. How?”

 

“Luck.  Timing. But yeah, I was waiting to hear from Ulquiorra this morning,” she said, sparing a glance and smile to him before continuing, “and he came in and offered to be my accompanist.  I asked him about the lounge gigs and he said he’d think about it. Maybe you can go look around campus for him and ask him how he feels about it? I’m sure you’d be able to convince him if you tried hard enough.  You’re very, um, tenacious.”

 

“Holy shit, Orihime.  Kurosaki? Are you kidding me?  Wait. You’re right. I gotta find Miz and then we gotta go find him.  See you later!” the dipshit said and scampered off.

 

“Guess I need to look for another pianist,” Orihime said, shaking her head and rolling her eyes.  She looked up at Ulquiorra. “I apologize for him. He’s nice but kind of an idiot.”

 

Ulquiorra was confused as to what just happened. “He seems like an excitable guy. I would compare him to a dog that pees on the floor whenever they see someone they like.”

 

She threw her head back and laughed.  “That is dead-on!” she said between bursts of laughter.  “Let’s hurry up, I don’t want to run into anyone else we know.”

 

He had no complaints with this. Ulquiorra let the woman lead the way back to her dorm. He kind of felt self-conscious as he walked into the building with her. Females were staring or they were whispering. “I feel like a fish out of water here,” he said.

 

“They are excitable.  They smell penis and they come out of hiding to sniff at it.  Just look at me and they won’t attack,” she whispered to him, trying not to laugh.  “I’m on the second floor so we can just take the stairs,” she said, pulling him into a side door.

 

As soon as the door closed, he sighed in relief. He never liked being the center of attention which was kind of ironic considering he was a Youtube musician. “Maybe you could join a sorority,” Ulquiorra said as he started to climb the stairs. 

  
“Ew, no thanks. Then I’d be obligated to go to all their functions and simper toward and flatter the frat guys.  Not my bag.” she finished speaking as she opened the door to the second floor hallway. “Fifth door on the left,” she said.

 

“Got it. Second floor; fifth door on the left. Just in case I want to sneak in during the middle of the night,” he said with a tiny smirk.

 

“Creepy and also somewhat interesting.  You are a complicated character, Cifer,” she said and chuckled as she entered the combination for her door lock.  It opened and she went in first and then stood to the side, sweeping her arm out and saying, “Welcome to my humble abode.  Would you care for a drink? We have filtered tap water and Diet Coke I believe. Only the finest for our esteemed guests. Oh!  I could also heat you up some herbal tea.”

 

He walked in and then turned around surveying the space. It looked like someone had been living here for several weeks, not just one. It was nice and cozy on one side of the room while the other side looked almost militant in appearance. “Tats is a stickler for shit, isn’t she?” Ulquiorra asked as he spotted some workout equipment under the bed.

 

“Yeah.  She would have made an excellent drill sergeant.  So? Beverage? Have a seat, by the way,” she said, bending over to look in the dorm fridge.

 

His jaw tightened as he watched her bend over. It wouldn’t be proper to just walk up behind her. Orihime deserved respect. She didn’t deserve to be treated like trash. “Uh, tea is fine,” he replied, following her directions to sit on the bed that looked like it belong to Orihime.

 

Orihime took the pitcher of water out of the fridge and poured some into two mugs and then popped them into the microwave. “You look nervous,” she said as she turned around and looked at him.

 

“Not nervous, apprehensive I guess. The last time I was alone with you… things happened.”

 

“Don’t worry.  Nothing has to happen that you don’t want to happen.  I know how much that bothers you,” the microwave timer went off and she went to get the cups and put tea bags into them, then returned and offered one to Ulquiorra.

 

He took the cup by the handle. The steaming water attested to how hot it was. It gave his hands something to do, so he wasn’t tempted to invade her personal space. “It’s not that. I kind of feel like I have more freedom here because Nel’s not going to barge through the door.”

 

She smiled as she blew across the surface of the liquid in her mug.  “That’s true. Hey, do you want to do another social media appearance?  “Homework with Obs and Veggs?” It could be a weekly segment,” she laughed.

 

Really? She wanted to take another photo with him? Even after what Nel had pulled? Ulquiorra thought about this for a moment. “Sure, we can do that,” he said.

 

“I mention it because I think it would be hilarious to somehow incorporate the title “Much Ado About Nothing” into it.  We don’t have to if you think it’s too soon; it was just a random thought,” she said, unzipping her backpack.

 

“No, no, no,” Ulquiorra said. “I just thought with what happened yesterday that you wouldn’t want to do that.”

 

“Haters gonna hate, Baby, what else are they gonna do?” she asked, putting on a smug expression, then laughing.  “Seriously, though, I was only upset because she was lying about you and I could see you getting upset in front of me.  As long as she doesn’t physically come after me she can say whatever she wants.”

 

“That’s one artist whose songs I refuse to sing. I do not like Taylor Swift,” Ulquiorra said. He slipped off his bag with the hand that wasn’t holding the tea mug. He looked around and then finally sat the hot cup on a desk, not sure if it belonged to Orihime or not. “So what are we going to work on?”

 

“I think we should knock out this interpersonal comm self-disclosure assignment first and then we can move on to English.  What do you think?”

 

“Ugh, I always hated these things. If we have to get through it, we can. When people answer them, it feels like they’re trying too hard.”

 

“Okay, let’s be totally honest then.  It might be a little boring, but it might be _very_ interesting.  I’ll go first. Number one, what are you best at?  Hmm. I’d say I’m best at singing, but I think really I’m best at taking care of people.  Not all people all the time, but if I decide to help someone I really do it.”

 

His mouth twisted to the side as he thought about the first question. “I’m not sure what I’m best at. I’m good at playing the guitar. I’m good at chess. I’m good at taking care of plants.”

 

“Plants?  Really? I like that,” she said, tilting her head to the side and smiling.  “I can play chess after a quick refresher but I’m not very good. Okay. One is done.  Two: What do you like most about me… I think it means your partner. Well, that’s throwing me in the deep end.  What do I like best about you? Well, today what I like best about you… is probably the way you look at me when you think I’m not looking,” she said, blushing and looking down and the worksheet, then raising her eyes back up to his.

 

His face turned red and Ulquiorra looked down at his lap. She wasn’t supposed to know he’d been looking. “Um. Um. Uh,” he floundered for words for a moment. “I like how you smile and how when you’re concentrating your eyebrows come together.”

 

She smiled and shook her head.  He was so cute. She wasn’t going to make him suffer or squirm though, so she moved on right away after checking off the question on the worksheet.   “Okay, number three: If you won the lottery, how would you spend your money? I think you should go first this time, I already went first the other times.”

 

“I would buy my ultimate guitar. I’d buy a cabin in the woods. I’d buy everything I could of David Bowie’s discography. You?” Ulquiorra said. He had this question down pat. “Oh, I’d give some to my dad for his wedding cake business.”

 

“That’s what he does?!  What a cool job!” she said, her smile wide and awestruck.  “Wow, I’ve never known anyone who did that before.”

 

Ulquiorra shrugged. “He runs a bakery that’s attached to this coffee shop. It’s where I worked. Most of his business comes from the wedding cakes he decorates for upscale weddings and other events.”

 

“I’d love to see what he does.  Does he have a website you could show me later?”

 

“He has a facebook, a website; any social media that is out there, he has it for his business. You can even order cakes off Etsy,” Ulquiorra said. He picked up his tea mug and took a sip. “What would you do with a lottery windfall?”

 

“I’m boring.  I would probably invest most of it.  I’d buy life insurance. I’d also buy a bitchin’ house with a recording studio and a hot tub, but really that’s just a real estate investment, right?  Oh! I’d also buy _all the underwear_ ,” she laughed at that.  “What’s number four?”

 

His teeth raked over his bottom lip, hearing her say that. “All the underwear? Like all the lace and ribbon your girly little heart could stand?”

 

“Ha ha, exactly.”

 

“Four is what is the most cruel thing you have ever done to an animal. I kicked Steve’s cat because she was crying late at night and she puked in one of my guitar cases.”

 

Orihime grimaced and sucked a breath in through her teeth.  “I hope that was a one-time thing…”

 

“Duh, Steve saw me do it and I got the lecture of a lifetime. My dad was disappointed in me. It was horrible. I had no wish to recreate that.”

 

“The worst thing I did was take Aunt Claire’s dachshund and dress it up in a bonnet and a doll dress and make it play tea party with me and when it wanted to run around and pee everywhere instead I screamed at it until it ran away.”

 

“Nel let her mom’s bird out of it’s cage. It got outside. I witnessed that. Okay next one we can skip. I wasn’t old enough to vote and ewww, politics.”

 

“Let’s see it.  Oh. I voted last year.  I lean left as you might imagine.”  She let the comment about Nel lie, although she found it irrelevant and off-putting.  “Number six, who did you have a crush on as a teenager? Oh that’s easy. You, Alan Rickman, and Mr. Law, over there,” she said, pointing to the poster at the end of her bed.

 

“You’re forgetting Mr. Brazil,” Ulquiorra muttered with a frown. He did a double-take at the poster though. “Wait, you like anime?”

 

She looked at him with an unimpressed, deadpan expression and then brought her hands up over her head and pointed at it with both index fingers.  “Big nerd, remember?”

 

“Hmph. One Piece is too long. I tend to stick to shorter runs,” he said, mimicking her expression. “One to four seasons is enough to get a story across.”

 

“I agree that One Piece is too long.  And generally the aesthetics are questionable.  But Zoro, Sanji, and Trafalger Law pass my bishi test.  I honestly stopped watching before Law showed up but, you know, the internet and fan art.  Maybe you know? I dunno. He’s pretty…” she said, her eyelashes batting at the drawing. “Oh and Mr. Brazil wasn’t really a crush.  He was just the first guy to express an interest and he was kinda nice and decent looking. I was very very flattered and apparently just had no idea.  You go.”

 

“No.”

 

“What?”

 

“No, I don’t want to say who I had a crush on.”

 

Her face fell.  “That’s not fair, I told you.”

 

Wow, she must have been oblivious. Ulquiorra sighed. “It was you.”

 

“Why didn’t you want to tell me that?  I told you I had a crush on you,” she said, picking at her blanket as her cheeks heated up.  Something in the way he said it made her feel like it was kind of a confession.

 

“Because I’m a lame person who had a crush on someone from the damn internet.” Ulquiorra glanced at Orihime and then at his lap.

 

Orihime set her cup on the windowsill and ducked her head under his downturned face and pecked his lips.  “Not lame,” she said in a low voice, then sat up. “What color are your underwear?”

 

“How bold of you to assume I’m wearing any.” He smiled at her because he was joking.

 

She raised an eyebrow at him.  “Oh? Prove it.” She was calling his bluff.

 

His eyebrows flashed. “My, my, you want me, don’t you?” Ulquiorra said. He stood up and with a dead-serious expression he unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans. He was totally wearing boxer-briefs but it was nice to taunt her.

 

“Liar, they’re black” she said calmly, crossing out the question.  “Next?”

 

“Wait a minute, you need to answer!”

 

“Oh?  Okay. White.  You want a look-see too?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded and swallowed. “Fair is fair,” he replied.

 

She was impressed that his voice didn’t crack.  She unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans and peeled them all the way off, then stood straight up.  “See? White.”

 

Yeah, they were white.  They were white satin and they were barely there in the front, with a very low rise and a criss-cross cord detail holding the front triangle to the hip part.  Luckily the back was a bit more modest.

 

“Nothing special, really,” she decided, after twisting her hip sideways and looking down at it to check that she was covered where it counted.  “We can hang out in our panties if you want, otherwise I’m going to put on something more comfortable than those jeans,” she teased.

 

His brain diverted blood from his brain to his groin. Ulquiorra’s mouth opened and then closed several times. He had to take a deep breath to steady himself. They had agreed to take it slow but neither of them seemed to take it seriously. Slowly, he toed his shoes off his feet before bending over to make sure they were lined up. Then he pushed his jeans down his legs before letting them puddle at his feet. Of course he couldn’t leave them in a pile on the floor. He had to fold them up too. “Fair is fair,” he repeated. 

 

Wow.  She had not expected that.  The husky tone of his voice and the intensity of his gaze caused heat to gather in her belly.  She bit her lip as her eyes traveled from his feet back up to his face, pausing at the bulge in his boxer-briefs. She exhaled as slowly as she could and took the two steps back to her bed softly and sat down, tucking her feet under off to one side.  “Okay, what’s the next question?” she asked quietly after clearing her throat.

 

“We’re still worried about that silly homework?” Ulquiorra asked, still standing. He studied Orihime for a moment. What if he upped the stakes? He fiddled with the hem of his t-shirt before he brought it up and over his head. He threw it onto the bed.

 

The woman’s mouth fell open and she stared at him, standing there in nothing but his underwear.  “Wow, I guess not…” she finally said, setting the paper to the side. Her face was slowly turning bright pink.  “What do you want to do?”

 

Ulquiorra felt his face getting hot. He wasn’t used to being asked what he wanted to do. He wasn’t used to just getting his way. “I don’t know… Um… Maybe what we were doing the other night?”

 

The memory of that night caused a soft buzzing sensation to start in Orihime’s brain; a warm, fuzzy cloud settling over the crown of her head and lips. Suddenly what was a slightly intimidating situation seemed like the most obvious thing in the world.  “Come here and we’ll see,” she beckoned, her voice weak and eyes glassy.

 

Another deep breath before his hormones were guiding him, coaxing his feet back to the bed. He sat on the bed beside her, unsure of what to do next. Had this been the witch before Orihime he would have already been on his back with her on top of him. Orihime wasn’t like that however. “I don’t know why I’m so nervous around you.”

 

“We don’t have to do this, you know, if you don’t want to.  You can always change your mind. _I_ can always change my mind.”  She might have been more convincing if she wasn’t looking at him like she wanted to eat him.  Still, she did mean it. “I’m nervous, fyi.”

 

“We shouldn’t be nervous. We know each other,” Ulquiorra said as he shifted closer to her. He wanted to just gather her into his arms and start kissing her. He felt hesitant though. He didn’t want another incident like Saturday to happen again. He didn’t want the miscommunication or misunderstandings to happen.

 

“Honestly, the nerves are part of the fun,” she said, standing up on her knees and leaning over to kiss him. “If you’re not a little nervous that means that there’s nothing on the line.”  She sat back down. “But listen to your guts.”

 

Just that kiss was enough to light a fire under him. His pupils widened so that it was hard to tell if there was an actual color to his eyes. He stared at the auburn-haired female for exactly two seconds before leaned over, attaching his mouth to her neck. Ulquiorra bit and licked his way up to her mouth where he kissed her hard.

 

Orihime whimpered into his mouth and her heart started racing.  She never would have imagined him to be this aggressive. She tried kissing him back but he was taking control of this situation and there was nothing she could really do to respond but try to keep up.  

 

When he felt like his lungs were going to give out, Ulquiorra pulled back and stared at Orihime. “Sorry,” he murmured, using one of his hands to caress her face.

 

Orihime smiled and leaned her cheek into his hand. “Don’t be sorry.  I told you to listen to your guts,” she said between pants. Her eyes flickered between his eyes and his lips and when he continued to touch her face after a moment, she smiled for him.  He was sweet.

 

He kissed her again, slowly this time, letting his lips linger against her mouth. It was then Ulquiorra pulled her into his lap, letting his hands trail down her sides. Once again his fingers ghosted over those marks at the top of her thighs before running over her ass. “These things are confusing. I thought most of your ass would have been exposed,” he said with a small chuckle.

 

“Sorry to disappoint,” she said with a ‘sorry not sorry’ giggle.  She was glad she still had her t-shirt and bra on. Just feeling his legs under hers was making her core swell. “Ulquiorra?” She murmured between kisses, not really knowing why, just wanting to hear his voice.

 

“Yes, Woman?” came the husky and deep voice. He was enjoying this moment, getting lost in it.

 

“I really,” she paused to kiss him, “like your,” kiss again, “name, Ulquiorra.”

 

The way she breathed his name; the way she whispered it made his brain short-circuit. “Orihime,” he said in reply. He fell back onto the bed, bringing her with him.

 

A high-pitched, soft grunt left her throat as they made contact with the somewhat springy surface, and all her brain could process was the feel of his long, slightly fuzzy legs against her smooth ones.  It was intoxicating. She slowly bent and straightened her knee, letting her calf and thigh run up and down the length of it as her hands tangled into his hair and she kissed him slowly, letting her lips linger and pull on his before letting go and then diving back in.

 

He moaned into her mouth while arching his body into hers. Oh, that felt different. The jolt he’d just experienced was a shock to his senses and he dug his fingers slightly into the woman’s ass. ”Don’t stop,” he whispered.

 

She did as he asked, slowly caressing his lower body from hips to calves with her leg while kissing him with leisurely licks and suction.  He was a treat and she wanted to savor him. “You taste good, Ulquiorra,” she whispered after dipping her tongue into his mouth.

 

“So do you,” he said. “I think you have too much clothing on though.” He wasn’t sure if he could even say or ask her something like that. Ulquiorra looked up at Orihime with a dark gaze. “When does your roommate get back? I don’t want any interruptions.” 

 

“Not until after 7:30,” she breathed, still writhing her leg but propping herself up onto one elbow.

 

He didn’t even bother to look for a clock. If Orihime was confident that they would be left alone then he would just go with the flow. He wrapped a hand around the back of her neck and pulled her down so that his lips melded with hers again. His hips arched up and against her body. He hissed at the contact.

 

Orihime realized they’d opened Pandora’s box; it was likely they were going to have to satisfy their appetites every time they got together to work on their pairwork.  She chuckled voicelessly as she realized what she was thinking about and decided to just go with this. He’d liked her for a long time. So had she. It wasn’t the same as doing this with someone she had just met five days ago.  She adjusted her body so that the next time he pushed himself against her, she’d feel it where it counted, and he’d learn firsthand how beneficial this high-quality lingerie she wore was.

 

If his eyes were open they would have rolled back into his head. Feeling the heat coming from between Orihime’s legs was almost too much as he pressed himself against her. The slide of that silky material against his boxer-briefs sent fire up his spine. “Fuck,” he moaned.   

 

“Nice, isn’t it,” she cooed after nearly biting her own lip off at the pressure.  It had been a long time since she had done anything like this. Seeing his penis in a photograph was one thing; feeling it pressed up against her underwear was another.  She suddenly agreed that she was indeed wearing too much clothes, and sat up to pull her t-shirt over her head. She shook her hair out and let him have a look at the matching white satin bra she had on, which was clearly part of a set with the panties.

 

“Jesus. Why didn’t we exchange pics before. We could have done this over and over again,” Ulquiorra said, bringing his hands up cupping her tits. “The entire ensemble is nice. Erotic.”

 

“Well, I’m glad you appreciate it.  Most guys would probably not even notice in their rush to get it off,” she said with a sly grin.

 

He glanced up at at her. Ulquiorra wasn’t one to rush things. He liked taking his time. He liked drawing things out. “I’m not like any guy you’ve met, Veggs. You know this. Other guys would have had sex with you the first night.”

 

“Heh, as if I’d let them,” she said, leaning down to kiss him again.  “I don’t just give it away.”

 

“Good.” Ulquiorra shifted his hands so that he held her waist. “I’m gonna roll us over, okay?” He didn’t wait for a reply before he had Orihime on her back. His head came down to capture her lips, giving her several quick pecks on the lips.

 

She smiled back up at at him, a warm glow of affection radiating up at him before her hands came up the sides of his hips to his front and smoothed their way over his abdomen and chest to rest on his shoulders.  “You look good from down here,” she admitted, then left one hand on his shoulder while the other one found its way to his back and pulled him to her.

 

He felt how hard he was. The movement they both were doing felt--There were no words with how it felt. Saying it was awesome wouldn’t even begin to describe it. This was on par with seeing one of those famous paintings for the first time. It was indescribable to Ulquiorra. His breath was hot against Orihime’s neck. He could hear how rapid it was coming. “Hime,” he murmured, using one hand to touch one of her breasts. “Vega.”

 

She gasped at his touch and her hips rose in a reflex. “Ulquiorra, if you keep doing that…” she trailed off.  She didn’t want him to stop, so what was the point of speaking? Her hips helped to prolong the drag between their bodies, the slippery friction from her expensive underwear causing a physical reaction as the fabric between them began to grow damp. “Mmm, yeah that is the thing.  Do that,” she whispered.

 

“What? This?” He said as he rolled hips against her. Oooh. He did that again but slower biting his lip. “Oh no,” he muttered.

 

“No?” she asked, after her involuntarily whine ended.

 

He shook his head. “If I do that I’m gonna… you know.” Ulquiorra felt his cheeks heating up. He was so lame.

 

She smiled and pulled his head down to kiss him.  “Well then at least we’ll have proven that you’re Vegasexual,” she said against his lips before she kissed him again, giggling as she did.  “Come on, Ulquiorra,” she said after she broke contact, “show me what you’ve got and then we can do it again next time, but, um, different? Or the same?  Either way, I’ll look forward to it.”

 

“But, what about you?” he asked, his eyebrows knitting together. Nel had told him a lady always comes first. He didn’t know if that was entirely true.

 

“I dunno, you might hit the spot long enough and I’ll get lucky, otherwise, you know,  I can wait?”

 

The break-in their activity actually allowed him to cool down somewhat. He blew out a long breath before continuing the thrust of his hips against her body. Ulquiorra could do this. He could hold off. “This feels really good.”

 

“I know,” she said, her breathing coming more rapidly now. She was glad she had enough willpower not to say what her brain was screaming at her:  that it would feel a lot better if he was inside of her. No matter. This was fantastic as-is. “Do you mind if I take my bra off?”

 

“Yeah I might need a bit of a break anyway,” he said as he sat up and back on his heels. He looked at the wall instead of the female under him.

 

She twisted around just enough to get a hand behind her, glad that she was only wearing a two-prong bra.  After she got it undone she saw that he was looking away from her. “Something wrong?” she asked, hands on her shoulders as she paused in taking off the straps.

 

Ulquiorra glanced at her. “Nope, just trying to maintain my composure,” he replied. “I’m not used to--this used to take me hours. With you… minutes. I don’t get it.”

 

She smiled and hummed the Final Fantasy victory fanfare. “Might take you a little longer once the novelty wears off and you realize what a dork I am,” she said after that.

 

“Okay, we’re not finished so no fanfare. Also,” Ulquiorra said then paused to look down at her body. “You’re gorgeous.”

 

She smiled and took that as her cue to take the rest of her bra off.  She lifted it off of her body and wedged in overhead between the headboard and pillow so it wouldn’t fall onto the floor, then looked back at him.

 

The other night when they did this she had been wearing more clothing. Now the only thing separating them were just two flimsy barriers of cloth. Weren’t they supposed to wait? Weren’t they trying to take things slow? He had called her his girlfriend. She referred to him as her boyfriend. Fuck it. He wanted her. Ulquiorra hoped she wanted him. As soon as she was comfortable again, his body was on top of hers again.

 

As soon as his body covered hers, and all that skin to skin contact happened all at once, Orihime’s brain did something.  Something she had never felt before. Something she knew she should probably repress at this point. Instead of declaring to him prematurely that she might love him, she brought her hands around his back and scratched down with her fingertips, only using the lightest contact with her nails, then tilted her hips back up towards his.  They would be better off finishing this sooner than later before it got too out of hand, emotionally.

 

“Hnnngh,” he whined, bucking his hips against her. He could feel the muscles in his stomach tighten and usually all he had to do to stave off his orgasm was run a hand over his abdomen and massage the tension away. There was no way he was going to do that with Orihime. He could feel her breasts pressing into his chest. He could feel the way her legs wrapped around his body. The area between her legs was warm and inviting. He could smell how turned on she was; hell, he could feel how turned on she was. The dampness was seeping into his underwear. “Orihime,” he moaned.

 

“Ulquiorra,” she answered, the timbre of her voice dramatically different than the previous utterances.  It sounded like a prayer or a wish. She sounded like she was being tortured. “Ulquiorra, I… I… Ah.”

 

That was a surprise.  Her legs started quaking and she called out again in an unintelligible cry as her hands grasped wildly at his back.

 

He had to bite back a groan as he that feeling of bliss rolled through his body. His body was shivering as heat flooded up the shaft of his cock. He was coming, his orgasm silent save for a few small whimpers that got past his lips. He let his body slump against hers.

 

She panted hard for awhile as the vibrations in her body faded away, and then she started to shiver.  Her teeth chattered. The emotional let-down from this was physical. She brought a hand up to his head and kissed the side of his neck, but then, uncomfortably cold and exposed, she asked, “Um, could you pull the blanket up?” she asked, the sound of her voice almost foreign.  Was she crying? What the hell? The hand that was not in his hair fell over her eyes. Fuck, she was. She pressed the hand to her face and hoped she would be able to get all of the evidence off before he had a chance to see.

 

He heard it. Ulquiorra rolled off of her and gently picked up the hand that was over her face. His green eyes peered at her as if searching for something. “What’s wrong? Did I hurt you?” he asked.

 

She shook her head.  “No, no it was nothing like that, I just… I was…  This is going to sound stupid but I was just really moved,” she said, laughing and crying more at the same time.

 

“Moved?” Ulquiorra asked. If she wasn’t crying because he hurt her then… She was being emotional. He reached down the bed and pulled the blanket over them. “Explain what you mean by moved.”

 

“Well, have you ever heard a piece of music that makes your chest feel tight and makes you feel like crying?  Even if it’s not sad at all, it’s just so… It just pulls an emotional response? Like it feels so good it hurts your heart?  Do you have any idea what I’m talking about?” she asked, the tears on her face drying up and being replaced by embarrassment.

 

His head went up and down. “Uh, Adagio for Strings. Sigur Ros’ Nothing Song. Jeff Buckley singing Hallelujah.”

 

She smiled and nodded.  He got it. “That’s what I mean by moved.  That’s what this was like for me.”

 

Was she saying that the orgasm they just experienced brought her to tears--Oh. Oh. The emotional connection between them. That was the reason they needed to wait to do this. Could Orihime feel like he felt? “Uh, sorry not sorry? Um, do you have any paper towels or some kind of wipes?” Ulquiorra felt bad for interrupting a meaningful moment but one of his quirks was kicking in.

 

Orihime laughed.  “You toad,” she said, a wide smile breaking the vulnerable expression she had been wearing a moment ago.  “Yes, I have that stuff,” she said, chuckling and getting up. “Sit tight a second.” She pulled the blanket up with her; she was still shivering, but kissed his temple on the way to the sink in the dorm room and wet a couple of paper towels, ringing them out and tossing them to him, with a well-timed “Heads up!”  Then she got her silk robe out of her closet and put it on, and got a used plastic shopping bag and the rest of the roll of paper towels, and a couple of hand towels and walked them over to him. “You can use this; I’m going to leave you to clean up while I go wash up in the bathroom. I’ll be back in five minutes, okay?”

 

Ulquiorra took the paper towels and the bag. He shook his head at the fabric towels. “You trust me in your room alone? Where’s your underwear drawer?” he asked with a smile.

 

“Top three right there.  Help yourself,” she said with a laugh.  “Oh! By the way,” she said, and as she reached the door, she sang the Final Fantasy victory fanfare and flashed him a toothy grin.

 

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes as the door shut. Now that he was alone, he stood up, stripping the underwear off of him. He didn’t think it was possible to come that much. It was more than he ever produced when with Nel. He grabbed some paper towels and started wiping himself off and soon had his clothes back on. Then Ulquiorra used the rest of the time to think.

 

He had known Vega--Orihime for two years. They had only physically known each other for about a week. Ulquiorra had just practically had sex with her. Why did he feel like he had taken advantage of her--of the situation? With a sigh, he buried his face into his hands.

 

What if Orihime didn’t like him like that? What if she had done this to be polite? What if?

 

Orihime took a quick shower and tried not to think too much, but doubts were circling her like sharks that smelled blood.  What if he thought she was a slut? What if he was gone when she got back? What if he had his curiosity satisfied and now he wanted to go back to being led around by the balls by Nel?  

 

No.  She shook her head.  She knew him. She knew _ObscurasIV_ , anyway.  He wouldn’t do that.  He cared about her. Even if he didn’t feel the same way she did, he cared about her.  Right?  

 

That was a good question, how she felt.  She decided to break it down.

 

Attraction?  Check.

 

Lust?  Check.

 

Affection?  Check.

 

Protectiveness?  Check.

 

Compatibility?  Check.

 

Ease?  Check.

 

Territoriality?  Yeah… check.

 

Intimate?  Check with room to grow.

 

Love?  She sighed. She had felt like she wanted to tell him she loved him.  She felt like she did. She thought so with Paulo too, but this was different.  This was _Obscuras_.  He was her dearest person in life.  So yes, in at least a few definitions of the word, she loved him before she met him.  All these real-life interactions were just reinforcing the idea.

 

Then there was the matter of how she suddenly stopped noticing all other men.  After Saturday, they seemed to stop existing. Just this morning, she met that pianist, Kurosaki.  He was a very good-looking guy. He was charming. He had given her some special attention. She didn’t even blink.  When she’d been with Paulo, she still took notice of the attention she was given by other males. Not so with Ulquiorra; her attention on him was laser-focused.

 

A flicker of anxiety crossed her mind.  She had better hurry up. She hid her dirty underwear in her towel and put the robe back on and returned to the room.

 

Ulquiorra’s head came up as she entered the room. He stood, looking at her. “Hey,” he said, rubbing his hands on this thighs. 

 

“Hi,” she said.  She pulled on a strand of hair and looked sideways, pursing her lips for a second.  “So… you hungry?”

 

They weren’t going to talk about what happened? 

 

“I have some Chicken in a Biskit crackers somewhere.  They’re kinda calling my name.”

 

He finally nodded. “Sure that sounds awesome,” he said. Ulquiorra took several steps towards Orihime. “Um, about earlier...”

 

She looked up at him, both relieved and anxious.  He wanted to talk. Good. Good? “Yeah?”

 

“I got ahead of myself. I know you said we should take it slow and I totally didn’t listen to you. I wanted that to happen. I’ve--” Ulquiorra stopped and gazed at Orihime’s face. He couldn’t read her expression all that well.

 

“You’ve what?” she asked, closing the distance between them and taking one of his hands, still looking at his face.  She hoped he wasn’t going to pull it away.

 

“I’m not really sure. I don’t want to lose you because you’re really great to be around. If I did something wrong, I’m sorry. I feel like I’ve pushed you into this...” He trailed off before raising their hands up. “I like this.”

 

She looked at their joined hands and smiled, then looked back up at him before kissing his knuckles.  “I like it too. I’m not going anywhere and we both kind of jumped the gun. You weren’t the only one who wanted to do that.  I’m the one who invited you back here. Our interpersonal comm teacher was the one who had us ask about our underwear. What the hell kind of question is that, anyway?” she asked, trying to lighten his mood.  She wasn’t sure if it was working.

 

“It was a fine question. I’m the one who had to turn it into something it probably wasn’t,” he said. Ulquiorra untangled his hand from the short woman’s grasp and then tilted her head up. He kissed her slowly. “We should probably finish that assignment, huh?”

 

She nodded silently, staring into his eyes, then pulled him down into a tight hug.  “I don’t know about you, Ulquiorra, but I’ve never felt this way about anyone before.  All I know is that as long as you’re around, I’m fine,” she murmured near his ear.

 

He stiffened for a moment before hugging her back. Was she saying that--? “Uh, same? Yeah, same. Of course, you’re only the second female I’ve been with. She who must not be named cannot compare to you though.” 

 

“I guess so,” Orihime said, pulling back and smiling at him.  “Now, about some clothes for me and crackers for us…”

 

“Clothes would be good unless--well yeah, clothes because I don’t have another pair of underwear to come in.”

 

She laughed.  “You could always wear a pair of mine… you know, if you’re into that kind of thing…” she said, waggling her eyebrows at him and nearly squealing at the idea.  

 

The frown on his face probably was etched there for all eternity.


	9. Death of A Bachelor

They only got a couple more questions done that night. Ulquiorra wanted to argue over the next one. When Orihime asked, “When was the last time you cried?” Ulquiorra responded with his usual response.

 

“Never.”

 

She had called bullshit on it. He had rolled his eyes because he couldn’t ever remember crying… The time where he almost died didn’t count. Stupid Nel and her hitting the beehive in his direction. He’d been lucky enough that his dad had been outside.

 

He had never taken anything from anyone either, so he couldn’t answer that question. Ulquiorra took the paper from her and read out number ten. “What do you least like about me? Well, this thing pulls the rug from under you.”

 

“Hmm, I wonder what your answer’s gonna be.  I know mine. You go first,” the woman in yoga pants and a freshly-laundered, borrowed, Harry Potter t-shirt said.

 

“No, that’s a trap,” Ulquiorra said as he ate a cracker from the box she offered. “There is not enough money in the world to make me answer that.”

 

“Oh, it’s that bad?  I have some fatal flaw that you can’t reveal?  I’ll tell you what I like least about you. I don’t like that you clam up and let life happen to you when you could just state your mind and deal with the consequences.  You’ve been making progress, but it’s still something you’re working through. I don’t like it because then I have to worry about you. Now. Don’t be a wuss and tell me what you don’t like about me.”

 

“What part of non-confrontational did you misunderstand?” he asked raising an eyebrow. “But I do not like that about you. I don’t like how you waltzed into my life and pegged how I am.”

 

“I do that.  I’m sorry, not sorry.  You’re not the only one who doesn’t like it.”

 

He kept his eyebrow up. “I also do not like it how you made yourself at home in my life. How you made me feel something for someone,” he said. “I don’t regret it though.”

 

She scoffed.  “Well, which is it?  You like it or you don’t?”

 

“Look, Woman. I’m allowed to contradict myself,” he said kissing her forehead. “At first I didn’t like it. Now...” Ulquiorra swallowed not knowing what to say. “Now I love it.”

 

“You do?”

 

“Yeah. I like how you just barged your way in and said, I’m taking over now.”

 

She laughed.  “Well, I hope you don’t expect me to take over the way Nel did, because I’m more of a benevolent ruler.  Okay, what’s next… What age do you think you’ll die? Eighty-seven. I don’t know. You?”

 

“Forty.”

 

“Forty?  Why?”

 

Ulquiorra sighed. “I don’t know. I just picked a number.”

 

“Well pick a bigger one.  I’m not superstitious generally but that just seems like bad juju.”

 

“Fine,” he stated. “One hundred. I’ll die when I’m one hundred.”

 

“Better.  What was your happiest moment?”

 

Ugh, this was becoming irritating. “I don’t know. I cannot pick out one--Okay, Saturday.”

 

“Yeah… that was a good one,” she said, smiling with a far-off expression.  “But I think I was even happier when you did Feel Good Inc and mentioned me on YouTube. I think that was the moment when I realized that you really, maybe, thought of me as more than just some internet anon.”

 

“You’ve always been more than just some internet anon,” he replied

 

“You sweet-talker.  Anyway, I lo---iked you early on too.  Some of these questions are really dumb.  A perfect evening? Um, one where we hang out. Where would I like to be?  Here, duh. What scares me? That’s a loaded gun. Any input until this point?”

 

He decided not to call her out on that word fumble. “What scares me is--No, I have no input.”

 

“Nothing?  C’mon. You don’t have to tell me your deepest darkest fear.  I’ll tell you mine though, and that’s being pushed into a life I didn’t choose for myself.”

 

“Falling so deeply in love with someone and they don’t feel the same.”

 

“Oh, that’s a good one.  A very good one.” She was quiet and looked at the box of crackers, grabbing at it half-heartedly.  After she shoved one in her mouth she gestured to the sheet for him to take over.

 

Ulquiorra sighed. “You want to talk about me clamming up? What are you doing right now?”

 

Her eyes nearly nudged out of their sockets.  Did he want to do this now? She swallowed. How— Well, didn’t she just say take action and deal with the consequences?  “You wanna talk about that now?”

 

He shrugged. “If I’m not allowed to clam up, you’re not either.”

 

“That’s not my point.  Are you prepared to talk about that now?”

 

“Yes. We practically had sex,” Ulquiorra said. “We can talk about this. We can talk about anything. I can tell you how my day was and you’ll tell me how I could make it positive. That’s us. We’re together in this, Veggs.”

 

“You keep me company when I feel so alone and insignificant that I don’t think anyone else would notice if I disappeared, but you make me feel like I matter,” she paused, swallowed hard, and blinked harder.  “You hear my unsolicited advice and you actually, _sometimes_ , appreciate it,” she said, venturing a look at his face.  “I can reach out and you always reach back. That’s us.”

 

She had avoided answering why his answer affected her but Ulquiorra realized something else. He felt the same way. “Okay, next question,” he said. “What was your nickname at school?”

 

“I didn’t have one.  Hime, I guess, but that’s just an abbreviation.  You told me one for you already and it’s so stupid and unbelievable that I don’t want to hear it again.   Are there any more?”

 

He looked at the sheet in his hand as he popped a cracker into his mouth. Ulquiorra chewed it at a slow pace and nodded. “There’s about thirteen more but we can do them tomorrow if you’re not busy or on Wednesday. We have that web thing to do then.”

 

“Do you have to go somewhere?”

 

Glancing up at her, he shook his head. “No, I’m just tired of answering stupid questions. Wanna watch a movie? I mean watch a movie, not Netflix and chill.”

 

So they watched a movie.

 

The rest of the week passed by and Ulquiorra dreaded his Algebra For Calculus class. Nel wasn’t there though. She had been surprisingly quiet. Then Friday came along. The dark-haired man was nervous as he let Orihime into his dorm room. The plan was to finish any work they hadn’t completed that week then watch Chamber of Secrets with their pizza. He didn’t bother to ask how her week was because he already knew after spending almost every free moment they had together. He felt like their relationship was comfortable.

 

“You have any homework?” he asked before giving her a kiss and shutting the door.

 

“Yeah, I have to write out some chord mods for theory and we have to finish up our self-disclosure questions and do a summary of how it went for interpersonal communication.  I think we’re on track for English and speech. You?

 

“I have a chapter to read for Electro Music and an entire chapter in Algebra that I’m almost through,” he said. “I must say I like college better than high school.” 

 

“Tell me about it,” she said with a small grin. “Nobody breathing down your neck.  No stupid cliques always in your face… I feel relatively anonymous here which is kind of freeing.  So… Do you want to lie in bed with me and finish up your math while I do my theory and then we can pound out those questions?”

 

He nodded. “It’s going to be a minute though because I’m uploading a new video.”

 

“Oh?  Is it the one from before that never got posted or a new one?”

 

He never uploaded a video this week. Ulquiorra had been distracted for lack of a better term. Between classes and Orihime he’d forgotten about it. “It’s the one I teased you with the other day,” he said. His laptop chimed signaling it was done and Ulquiorra went over to his desk and sat down. He typed, his fingers flying over the keyboard. Then he used the touchpad to submit it. “Done. It should be up in a moment.”

 

Orihime grinned.  She was such a dork.  She had her phone on and kept refreshing it so she could comment with, “FIRST!!!!”

 

She was not successful.   “Tsk,” she said when it finally came up and there were already five of the same comments there.  “Do you mind if I listen to this now?”

 

“Nope, go ahead,” he said with a smile. 

 

She listened and smiled as it started, glancing at him to murmur, “I like this song,” before turning her attention back to the song.  Her smile rose and relaxed as she listened to him sing _Death of a Bachelor_ , and she grinned and nodded when he flipped into his head voice on the high notes, mouthing the word, “nice”.  When it was over, she tapped out a comment, posted it, then looked over at him and gave him a kiss. “That was a treat,” she said before sitting back down.

 

Ulquiorra shook his head with an amused look on his face. There was a reason he picked the song. “I thought it was fitting for this week. I mean after the Instagram declaration,” he said.

 

She grinned and bit one side of her lower lip for a second.  “That did not fly over my head. Read my comment.”

 

He went to his YouTube page and then clicked on the video. There were already over fifty comments. His brow furrowed as he scrolled through them. Most said first. There were some that said nice or had other emojis. “Let’s see, Vega… Vega… Here we go. Your woman approves with an “X O X O. Hmmm.”

 

“That’s my pressed for time comment, you’ll get the critique later,” she said, chuckling.

 

“Oh? Is it bad? I’m not used to singing like that.”

 

“It is _not_ bad.  It’s rather good.  Sometimes a critique is just pointing out the particular things that were really good; the things that stood out from how you consistently perform.”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. Whenever someone said the word critique around him, he had to prepare himself for either an ass ripping or rejection. “Okay, time to get down to business,” he said, grabbing the thick math textbook and his notebook. “I really wish the guy teaching this class would get behind the digital movement because this book kills me.”

 

Orihime eyed the book in question and was inclined to agree.  “That is quite the volume. This little flimsy workbook is the only thing my theory professor uses.  He wrote it himself. He is… Fantastic. Dr. Carlisle sings and plays piano to start and end every class.  He is brilliant. And darkly funny. And, like the ugliest gay man ever. He dresses like those grandmas who wear applique sweaters and he has the face of a cockatiel.  But I would consider leaving you for him, just sayin’,” she said with a giggle, trying to get a rise out of Ulquiorra.

 

A small scoff left him before he shook his head. “You have notes to write out Miss Inoue. Get to work or no pizza.”

 

“Oh, okay, sorry _Dad_ ,” she complained, flopping down on her belly, opening the notebook and flipping to the page she needed before clicking on a mechanical pencil.

 

Ulquiorra watched her as he sat with his back against the wall. He could not believe how much of a whirlwind this past week had been. After what happened Monday night, Ulquiorra’s hormones had cooled a bit. He could be around Orihime without wanting to hump her leg. He could kiss her without wanting to drag her into a dark corner and just ravish her. He could stand her pressing her body against him when she gave him hugs. This was a good thing. “So for my next song, I’m thinking either a song by Bush or Placebo.”

 

“Ooh, which songs?”  She thought his voice had a Gavin Rossdale flavor, so she was hoping for Bush.

 

“Swallowed or Every You, Every Me,” he replied, writing something down in the notebook.

 

“Can’t you do both?  I mean, not this week but I adore both of those songs.  But, I have to ask, why those songs?”

 

Ulquiorra shrugged. “I like them? I mean, usually I have songs lined up but I misplaced my list. So I forgot what I was going to record.”

 

She chuckled.  “You? Mr. Organized misplaced his list?  I suppose it happens to the best of us. Well, when you mentioned Bush or Placebo I was pushing for Bush, but Every You, Every Me is so, so good.  I want to hear you sing it.” She didn’t mention that hearing him sing it would be a huge turn-on for her.

 

“Maybe I’ll do one of those Instagram stories and try it out like I did with Feel Good Inc,” Ulquiorra said, glancing at her.

 

“It’s a good idea.  Good marketing, too, if you think about it.  Create a buzz. Not that you’re exactly selling anything, but… You know what I mean.”

 

The dark-haired man thought about this for a minute. “I could, but promoting yourself is tedious. Plus touring and the parties… No thanks. I don’t want more fangirls hanging off my dick, or attempting to.”

 

Orihime actually flinched.  “I wasn’t suggesting that…” she said, and shook her head somewhat as she returned her face to her book.  “I just was talking about getting more views for your video. Maybe get on the trending page. It’s just a vanity thing.”

 

He saw her reaction. He hadn’t meant her. “Veggs, I didn’t mean you,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“I know… It’s just you said it and I pictured it.  Vivid imaginations aren’t all they are cracked up to be.  Anyway, you’ve given this some thought. Did you ever have a time when you thought maybe touring was something you wanted to do?”

 

“Back in 2017. I was uploading a couple of times a week and I had to silence my phone because there were nothing but notifications all day long. I discussed it with my mom who knows people. Nel put a stop to it,” Ulquiorra said. He closed his textbook and put it on the bed beside him. 

 

Orihime’s eyebrows knit together.  Nel, huh? “So, it was something you wanted to do but Nel didn’t want to _let_ you?”

 

He nodded, thinking about that time. He’d been so stupid. “She didn’t want me to leave her behind. She threw a fit and cried.”

 

Orihime growled out a scoff.  “I don’t care! I mean, _I_ would be sad to be left behind, too, but this is your life we’re talking about.  Your passion. If it’s something you wanted to do she should have been supportive.  It makes me mad. Again.”

 

“Well you weren’t exactly around when this happened so,” Ulquiorra said, then sighed. He didn’t know why he still felt salty about her having a boyfriend at that time. Well, he did know but he wasn’t going to acknowledge it. It wasn’t Orihime’s fault about what happened. “I know you had a life of your own, but Nel was all I had at that point.”

 

She took a deep breath and rolled over to her side to look at him.  “I know. I’m sorry I left you all alone with the harpy. Is it something you have any interest in now?”

 

“Not really. It was a pipe dream. I since came down out of that cloud. I’m more grounded,” Ulquiorra replied. Sure he wanted to be a famous musician and touch people with his voice and words but there were people out there who were better than him. There were people who deserved the spotlight more than he did. “I need a career that is more structured.”

 

“You do?”  She was quiet for a moment.  “It’s not just a pipe dream, you know.  If you wanted it, you could do it. I’m sure of it.  However, you’re the only one who knows what will make you happy.  I want you to be happy,” she said, smiling at him and then looking out the window.

 

“What do you actually want to do with your life? You don’t want to do classical singing so what?”

 

“I’m not sure.  I’m hoping college will help me figure that out.  I know I love performing. I love singing and making people feel something.  But when I sing classical music, I’m faking it. I don’t feel it, so anything I’m communicating to my audience feels fake.  This Concert Class is going to be a disaster,” she said, wilting a bit at the idea. “I like Silent Noon; it’s a pretty poem and the arrangement is nice, but the other two are ridiculous.  I don’t have a lover with blue eyes that I can’t stop singing about. I don’t even understand the Italian song, and I’ll tell you a secret: at this point, I have no motivation to even look up the translation, and I’ve been singing that song for months.”

 

“You do have a lover with green eyes,” he said, as he reached for the textbook he discarded. He reached across Orihime and put it on the floor before stretching out beside her. “Wanna work on the stupid questions?”

 

She nodded as a lazy smile pulled at her lips.  “Yeah, do you have that sheet or should I get it?”

 

“You’re in charge of it. Not me.”

 

“Pfft, okay. I see how it is, slacker,” she teased, rolling over and grabbing her bookbag, pulling out the folder she had the worksheet stashed in.  “Okay, let’s see, where were we? Ah yes. Stupid question number seventeen. Or wait, you never finished sixteen. Any other nicknames in school?”

 

“No, I had Ulq, Uglyorra, Ulqui,” came the reply.

 

She nodded.  “Okay, do you watch soap operas and do you have a favorite?”

 

“I binge stuff on Netflix and other streaming services. Right now, I’m watching American Horror Story.” Ulquiorra took the paper from her. “Let me guess, you’re into Supernatural and Riverdale and Pretty Little Liars?”

 

“I like Supernatural, okay but I’m not like a super fan or anything.  I’ve never watched the other two. I liked the show Superstore but then the sexual tension went away and now it’s dullsville.  Hmm… Oh. Game of Thrones and Homeland and Episodes; I watched those at my aunt’s house when we would get premium channel preview weekends on cable.  And I finally watched Downton Abbey this summer. Loved it. Never need to watch it again though. I’m not watching anything now.”

 

“Okay, I liked Game of Thrones too but after the fourth season, things got boring. Next question. Whom have you ever wished was dead. Not answering,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Yeah.  That’s some deep dark shit for a survey question.  Pass.”

 

A smile crossed his face. “If there were a ten-minute warning for the end of the world, what would you do?” His smile turned into a frown. “Fuck.”

 

“What, you don’t like the question?”

 

He turned his head to give her a stern stare. “No, I would fuck… you; someone. I’m not dying a virgin.”

 

“Wow, well then, if it ever comes down to it, I hope I’m in the vicinity.  My answer, have sex and eat cheese and sing my fool heart out and listen to you sing.  Maybe all at the same time, you know, to maximize the time,” she smirked. “What’s next?”

 

“The age-old boring question: What do you most like about yourself?”

 

“Oh, that’s easy.  My boobs,” she said, totally serious and giving one a squeeze and waiting for his turn patiently.

 

“Uhhhh, uh, uh,” Ulquiorra said trying to think. There was one thing he put the most pride into. “My hair.”

 

“It is nice.  You could do shampoo commercials.”

 

Handing the paper back to her, Ulquiorra shook his head. “I need a trim. It’s getting too long and annoying. I’m gonna have to put it into a man bun soon,” he said with a smile.

 

A low growl preceded the words, “Yes, please.”  

 

“Yes, please what? Haircut or man bun? Read the next question, Woman.”

 

“Manbun then haircut.  I want to see it all. Okay.  Next question… What makes you laugh the most?”

 

“I don’t laugh.”

 

“Liar.  I’ve heard you laugh plenty of times.  I laugh all the time, but I think I laugh the hardest when someone points out how completely ridiculous I am.”

 

“Okay I laugh but there’s nothing that can consistently trigger it.” Ulquiorra closed his eyes for a moment then opened them. He was starting to get a headache. It was probably from not wearing his contacts, but they were a hassle to deal with. He didn’t like the glasses either. “Next?”

 

She saw him wince.  “You okay?”

 

He gave a nod. “Just some eye strain. I’ve done a lot of reading in the past two weeks. Probably need some eye drops and… some stuff for the headache.”

 

“Oh, I’m sorry… do you want me to leave so you can get some rest?  I have some ibuprofen otherwise.”

 

“I’m fine, just, don’t freak out,” he said as he swung a leg over her body, followed by the other one as he stood. He went over to his desk and pulled out the middle drawer, rummaging around. He pulled out the eye drops and squeezed some into his eyes. He left the bottle on his desk before he pulled another item out. Frameless glasses now perched on his face. Ulquiorra went back to the bed, climbing back over the short woman.

 

She looked at him intently, her bottom lip pressed between her teeth, trying not to smile.  He looked damn cute in those glasses. Studious. Dignified. Older. Hot. A moment or two passed.  

 

“Yeah… those are nice,” she said, casual.  She hadn’t freaked out. Not outwardly, anyway.

 

At least he could read stuff now without squinting. “Nice?” He asked. “I know I look like a geek.”

 

“You look like a hot teacher or something.”

 

Ha! He was in no way hot. “You need your eyes checked, lady,” Ulquiorra replied. “What is the next question?”

 

She raised her eyebrows dubiously as she looked down at the paper.  He was the one who needed his eyes checked. “It asks, if you could be anyone, who would you like to be?  Hmm… I can’t think of anyone specific, but I would like to be a better version of me, I think.”

 

“Hmmm, I think the same thing. Me with more freedom and less neurotic behaviors,” Ulquiorra said.

 

She nodded.  “What would you most like to be able to do that you now can’t?”

 

The more he thought about this question the more he did not want to answer. “Um, be friends with Nel. Like before we did anything friends. Like when we were little kids kind of friends.” He looked up at the ceiling and then at the wall.

 

Orihime reached for his forearm and rubbed it a few times in a sympathetic gesture.  Orihime did not have an immediate response for this question and thought perhaps he needed a moment or two before she interrupted his thoughts.

 

“What about you?”

 

“Mine is nowhere near as deep as yours, but I think I’d like to be able to play an instrument and sing, _well,_ at the same time.  Let’s see… What would you most like to change about yourself as you are now?”

 

Ulquiorra laughed. “Uh, my OCDs. I’d like to get rid of them.”

 

“Some people say OCD is a manifestation of feeling a lack of control in your own life.  I don’t know if that’s true for you but maybe now that Nel’s not leading you around by the collar you’ll feel more in control.  There could be some hope there,” she commented. “I would… I think I would change… I dunno. Maybe my broken verbal filter. I just keep blurting out things that should probably be left unsaid.”

 

“It is what it is,” he replied. Ulquiorra looked over at the sheet. “What would you most like me to say to you right now?”

 

A hiccup of a laugh prompted her to smile in an embarrassed way.  “Uh… there are a lot of things I’d like to hear you say, but to admit them kind of flies in the face of my answer to the previous question,” she said, her cheeks flushing in a slightly patchy way.  She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “You go first.”

 

His mind went blank. Of course, there were a lot of things he wanted to hear Orihime say too, but none of them were appropriate. None of them even dealt with their course work. “Uh, why don’t we skip this question.”

 

“Okay.  Wuss,” she teased, nearly winking at him.  It was just as well, she thought. It was early.  

 

“I’m not a wuss. If you’re not going to give a straight answer there’s no reason why I should,” Ulquiorra said. “Besides, I don’t know what I want you to say to me.”

 

“Okay, fair’s fair.  Twenty-six is easy. Who in this course do you find most attractive?  Duh. Obviously, it is that homeless-looking guy who stares at everyone in the second row.”

 

He smiled for a brief second. “Oh yeah, the bottle blonde in the middle row really gets me. I like her boob job. Speaking of which, are yours natural?”

 

“You’ve had a handful, what do you think?” she said with an incredulous expression.

 

“They’re real.”

 

“Bingo.  I wouldn’t need the fancy lingerie if they were fake; they’d hold themselves up like that.  Okay, how did you last break the law? That’s not even… oh wait, I have to think about this.  You go first.”

 

“You want me to incriminate myself?” Ulquiorra asked. He scrunched his face up. “I downloaded music this morning.”

 

“I had a beer after freshman orientation.  Pretty sure that was it. What’s next?”

 

“What are you most proud of having achieved in your life?” Ulquiorra said. He wanted to crumple up the worksheet and throw it out the window. “Uh, I don’t know.”

 

“Well, I’m approaching this question as if how I felt before coming to this school doesn’t count.  And this is so, completely uncool and fangirly, but it’s probably meeting you if I’m totally honest.”

 

“Why are you proud of that?”

 

“I mean, if you question it, it doesn’t really hold up.  I didn’t do anything to be proud of. But, it’s like unlocking an achievement in a video game.  It’s rare and has a high difficulty level, and makes me feel slightly superior to the other fangirls.  Like I said, I am not cool.”

 

He wanted to smile at that but didn’t. She was always putting herself down. “You are fine, Orihime. I don’t care if you’re cool or not cool. If we’re thinking in that vein of thought, I’m proud that I posted the gym picture which flustered you.”

 

She smiled.  “We’ve got to be close to the end now, right?”  She reached for the worksheet which was sitting in Ulquiorra’s lap.  “Number twenty-nine, What is the most embarrassing that ever happened to you?”

 

Ugh, a question like this. “You want to talk about uncool? I almost died… in front of Nel. She laughed about it for months.”

 

Her brows rose and knit together.  “What the fuck is wrong with her? That’s not funny.  How did you almost die?”

 

“I’m allergic to bees and Nel found a beehive in one of the trees on our property. Well, we had one of Steve’s golf clubs,” Ulquiorra explained. “She hit it with the club, the bees scattered. I got stung. Had to be rushed to the hospital.”

 

Orihime looked horrified.  “When did this happen? Did she know you were allergic?!”

 

“Probably three years after we moved to Ohio, so we were like seven? And no,” he stated. “She wasn’t told until after the incident. She kept making fun of how my face swelled. It was scary. My dad was outside and he always carried a fanny pack thing when we were outside.”

 

Orihime sat back, slightly relieved, and moved her hand away from her mouth.  “Well, I’m glad to hear it was when you were kids and she didn’t know. I mean I guess you can chalk it up to little kids being assholes.  Still, that breaks my heart. I’m sorry little Ulquiorra of the past,” she said with a pout, before leaning over and kissing his cheek. “I’m very glad you survived.”

 

Ulquiorra didn’t say anything for a moment. “The little kid version of me was quiet and a loner. I was focused on learning the piano and guitar. I was a goody two-shoes. I was an asshole too. I put gum in Nel’s hair.”

 

Orihime shook her head.  “It sounds like she had it coming.  I can see you as a goody-goody. I probably would have liked you.  I wouldn’t have talked to you though. I was like, pathologically shy when I was little.”

 

He raised his eyebrows. “I can imagine this tiny ginger headed girl with wild curls and big brown eyes, but you’re a chatterbox.”

 

“Yeah, I came out of my shell after I started getting some recognition when I started singing.  It helped that the timing coincided with middle school when choir became an elective. I found a couple of people I could relate to. I may now be making up for lost conversations,” she laughed.  “But I never had curly hair. Anyway, my most embarrassing moment… ugh, it’s tough to pick just one. I’ll let you pick, A or B.”

 

“A. Always A. I will never pick B.”

 

“Okay, we’ll circle back to that idiosyncrasy later.  Anyway, A is for asshole. Several months after Brazil boy went back to his home planet I met another guy.  We went out a couple of times. It was nice. It wasn’t a big deal. Just like, bowling with some friends and then we saw a matinee at the movies.  I don’t even think we held hands, it was just something to see if we had anything in common, and we really didn’t talk much, so I don’t think we did.  But anyway, I’m getting sidetracked,” she said,  swallowing and taking a breath before continuing. 

 

 “Anyway, after, like, our third “date”, I started getting a lot of weird looks from people and guys giving me their numbers and trying to talk to me, and I was thinking like, Oh, maybe I look prettier or something, right?”  She paused to gauge his reaction. He was not really giving anything away, so she went on. “So it turns out, he was telling his entire gym class that I went down on him and that he had pictures. Apparently, he found some porn and took screengrabs of the back of some girl’s head in a guy’s lap that had the same color hair as me. It was awful.  Nobody believed me for weeks. It turned out, that guy was gay and he was afraid of people finding out so he used me as a way to make people think he wasn’t. After the semester ended, somebody saw him making out with an older guy in a gas station parking lot and then the rumors about me died down, but I couldn’t date anyone at our school after that.”

 

His lip curled at the end of her story. “Ugh, people are assholes. I would have kicked someone’s ass for that. Please tell me you had someone beat the crap out of him,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“No, he got away with it.  And people still thought I was slutty after that.  Oh well, it doesn’t matter. I stopped hanging out with that group of people and spent most of my time with my band after that.  They were a decent group of guys. Smoked too much weed, but decent. Didn’t harass me. Treated me like a person and not a set of boobs.”

 

“Still,” he complained. “Last question?”

 

“Finally!” she said, grinning and mentally resetting herself away from those memories.  “Let’s see here, When in your life did you feel most sad?” She looked up at him with a displeased face.  “They really know how to end this assignment with a couple of downers.”

 

“Tch, this entire thing has been tedious. I’m surprised that we haven’t fought over some of the questions,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Why would we fight over it?  We’re just sharing information,” Orihime asked.  The concept of fighting over something like this was completely alien to her.

 

“I mean arguing over my answers when I don’t want to give information up. Nel would do that when I didn’t want to answer things. She’d pick a fight. She wouldn’t like my word choices.” He shook his head. “So you go first.”

 

Orihime shook her head and exhaled.  She already knew she really disliked Nel, but the more she learned the worse it got.  “No one has a right to do that, you know. You get to decide how you think and feel and share information,” she huffed and closed her eyes for a minute, counting to five in her head to let her sense of justice about the Nel thing subside.  “Okay, saddest thing… I mean, I was devastated when Mr. Brazil left… for like a week. Then I realized it wasn’t that I was sad that _he_ was gone, I was sad that I wasn’t going to get laid anymore… so I guess that’s not the best answer but I think that was when I was most demonstrative.  Maybe just my entire childhood when I was lonely and had no friends. You?”

 

He shrugged and decided to give a half-ass answer. “The day I uploaded my first YouTube video, I was having one of those teenage angst moments. The ones where you just want to give up? Anyway, I kind of was contemplating doing things to harm myself. Nel pointed out there could only be one person in our friendship who was screwed up and she told me to find something productive to do with my time. As a result, it led me to you.”

 

She leaned over and caught his lips in a sweet kiss, lingering for a couple of seconds.  “Well, I’ll thank her for that one day… maybe,” she said.

 

A slow smile spread over his face. “Ready for pizza and the movie?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

“Yes.  I have to go to the bathroom though.  Meet you back here in a minute, okay?”

 

“Okay.”


	10. Eggplant Emoji

Another Harry Potter movie was marked off the list. They managed to make it through the film and eat their dinner that he had ordered. It was now Saturday afternoon, Ulquiorra sat in his room in front of his laptop, looking at all the emails, comments and messages he had received over the week. Surprisingly there was a message from Nel. 

 

 **Gamuza3  
** I’m sorry.  
You’re still my best friend.  
I’m jealous that someone else has your attention.  
Can you blame me though?

 

Ulquiorra decided not to reply. That ship had sailed and it wouldn’t do to stand on it while it was sinking. Besides, thinking about Nel wasn’t wasn’t productive. 

 

He’d gotten a lot done that day. His run and squats were completed. He found the music for the song he wanted to sing. He had showered and shaved. The only thing he had to do was record a new song, maybe do that Instagram thing again. He could post another photo but he was still on the fence about it. Maybe it was time to reveal his face. He shook his head. That was the last thing he needed.

 

Picking up the guitar, Ulquiorra tuned it before he was doing a first run of the Placebo song he had decided on. He had also chosen the songs he was going to do for the next couple of weeks, this time typing up the notes on his computer instead of scribbling them down on a piece of paper.

 

He was going to do a second run through when his phone let out a shrill ring. His mother was calling. Just his luck. He dismissed the call, not in the mood to talk to Maria Cifer. If it was really important she could text him.

 

***

 

Orihime woke up late after spending much of the wee hours of the evening in bed going over her evening with Ulquiorra in her mind.  I had been nice. It had been sweet. It had been enjoyable. It had been what she had wanted it to be.

 

She was just so fucking horny.

 

There was nothing she could do about after she got home, either; not with Tatsuki home.  She had been out the night before and wasn’t feeling up to going out that night.  So Orihime spent time in bed, hiding under the covers and trying to distract herself with online personality quizzes and related time-wasters until she was too exhausted to keep her eyes open.

 

Saturday was her first day of practice with her lounge act.  Ichigo had texted Orihime with his schedule during the week and she had managed to talk him into an hour of his time to see if the act would be something he’d be interested in.  She booked a large practice room and decided to wear something that would invoke a lounge bar vibe - an emerald green maxi-dress with a deep V-neck and a leather jacket. Maybe the eye candy would sweeten the deal, she thought.

 

Orihime knew how the entertainment world worked.  She knew if she showed a little skin and employed a little sex appeal, her work would be more marketable.  She was young and attractive. It would be a waste to not take advantage of it while she had it.

 

So she headed to the Fine Arts building at twelve-thirty and set up the practice room.  Keigo and Mizuiro got there about five minutes early and as Mizuiro was tuning his upright bass, Ichigo waltzed in. It was exactly one o’clock.

 

“Holy shit, Dollface, you weren’t kidding,” Keigo stammered, eyeing Kurosaki like he was the second coming of Christ.  

 

Orihime rolled her eyes and turned to face the pianist.  “Thank you for coming. This is Keigo and this is Mizuiro.  I know you’ve got things to do today, so why don’t we get started right away?  Do you have a lot of jazz piano experience?”

 

“Enough,” Ichigo said and yawned.  “How about we just try it out and see how it goes?  I don’t need to waste a lot of time, I’ve got a date later.”

 

Orihime nodded.  “Sounds good to me.  Do you know _Fly Me to the Moon_?”

 

He nodded, and they agreed on key signatures and got into it.  The first run-through was klutzy. Orihime asked for a second go-round, which was better.  They agreed to a third one, and this time Orihime set up her phone on top of Mizuiro’s bass case and recorded the rehearsal.  It wasn’t half bad.  

 

They ran through a couple more standards and by the time the rehearsal was over, Ichigo was anxious to leave but agreed to try another rehearsal if they could book a show that would pay at least a hundred dollars per person.  Heads nodded and the pianist left.

 

As soon as the door was closed, Keigo squealed and started gushing to Mizuiro.  

 

“I’ve gotta go guys, can you clean the room up?  I’ll leave you the keys,” Orihime said as she left the practice room.  It was hot in there and she wasn’t in the mood to listen to Keigo’s childish daydreaming.  She had a gig to book, anyway.

 

On the way back to her room, she sent Ulquiorra a text.

  

  * __Rehearsal went better than expected, check it out!_ _



 

 She sent the video of _Fly Me to the Moon_ along with it.

 

***

 

He smiled at her text. Ulquiorra decided to take a break. His fingers were aching from practice; strumming the same chords over and over. They should have been used to the exercises but there were times he gripped the neck of the guitar too tight, causing his wrists to burn and ache.

 

 -  _ _Nice. I’m getting lunch atm. Did you want to hang out later tonight or tomorrow?__

 

 His choice today wasn’t the healthiest but Ulquiorra was in the mood for a hamburger and fries. He felt he earned it.

 

Orihime responded after a minute.

  

  * __Yeah.  I’m going to go get a bite and pound the pavement a bit looking for venues, so dinner later?  I’ll be driving later this afternoon so communication may be patchy. I’m going to hit up some wedding venues too and the bigger hotels are a bit of a hike.  Since I’ve got the car out we could go somewhere, if you want?_ _



 

 Ulquiorra read the text and nodded. Having a date that wasn’t on campus might be ideal. But he remembered the last car date in which he had participated. The thing in the car with Nel; him almost slipping inside of her because she was impatient. 

 

Orihime wasn’t Nel. He knew his girlfriend was willing. She was ready to go. He wanted to but there were still some hangups. It was too early in their relationship to talk about how deeply they felt for each other. Ulquiorra knew what he felt for Orihime. It wasn’t complicated.

 

 -  _ _Sounds great. Thanks for reminding me that I need to pay for parking this week. I put my car in a garage off-campus. It’s mostly for me to drive back to BFE. What time?__

 

  * __LOL.  I’ve always wanted to see the BF Pyramids.  Are they any good? JK. How about 6:30/7? I’ll let you know when I’m done and we can finalize?_ _



 

 Okay, Ulquiorra knew he was smitten with her when he read the text. The smile on his face was small but it seemed to light up the area around him. 

 

 -  _ _Send me a text, lmk. Maybe I’ll dress up for you. ;)__

 

 Ooh, that sly fox.  Okay, this was shaping up to be a better day than Orihime had anticipated.

 

  * __Will do.  Let me know if I need to step up my game.  See attached._ _



 

She stopped in front of a building with a blacked-out glass exterior and took a somewhat blurry full-body shot, and then another picture showing her face and the top of her body from an elevated angle, a great deal of cleavage visible between the green of her dress and the black of her jacket.  She flashed a peace sign and a cheeky grin and snapped the pic, sending the message as she continued her way to the main drag of the nightlife area near campus on foot.

 

He had gotten his food and taken it back to his room. Ulquiorra knew he’d hear Szayel bitch about the smell later, just like he’d done with the reheated Chinese food. When he sat at his desk the message popped up on his phone. He let out a low whistle.

 

 -  _ _Damn baby, you gotta boyfriend? LOL. I’ll see you later.__

 

 Orihime smiled as she read his response and just send back a message that said OK and a kissy face emoji.  When she finished she looked up to see a coffee shop that she had heard about from someone in her theory class.  Apparently, it was run by this guy whose nephew used to play guitar with some OSU student bands and since then they often had people come and play there, generally just a singer with a guitar or a keyboard or something like that.  She had it written down in her phone somewhere that the guy’s name was Chad Sado, and that if the person at the counter wasn’t at least six foot seven, she should ask for him.

 

She walked in and lo and behold, there was a huge guy with longish, wavy brown hair working an espresso machine.  She decided to eat there and talk so she wouldn’t be totally disturbing this guy’s day. When her turn came up she ordered a plain black coffee and a turkey sandwich and said, “Um, are you Chad Sado?”

 

“That’s me,” the big guy responded.

 

Orihime looked behind her.  It was well after the regular lunchtime, and there were no other customers in line at the moment.  “I’m a singer, my name is Orihime Inoue and I’m a student at OSU and I’ve been told that you are the guy to talk to about possibly playing here once in a while?”

 

“Yep.”

 

Okay, so not the most outgoing guy.  “Well, I have a card, and I could audition if you want but otherwise I can send you a demo or something?  I recorded something on my phone today of my lounge act but it’s probably not what you’re looking for in a place like this; my boyfriend and I have been talking about doing acoustic 90’s alt-rock covers,”  It was a stretch of the truth, but Chad’s face perked up at this information.

 

“Oh yeah?  Whose songs do you cover?”

 

“Well, I used to be in a Weezer/Oasis cover band, and my boyfriend and I have been doing some Foo Fighters--”

 

“Awesome.  Yeah, give me your card and take one of mine, uh, here,” the big guy interrupted, reaching over the register and handing her a card with his name and contact information for the coffee house and had the word, “Promoter” under his name.  “If you could send me something in the next couple of days that would be great, I think I still have an empty slot sometime next week, so the sooner the better. If you’re good I can think of another place you might wanna play, your look suits it,” he said as he handed her a number for her food.  “I’ll be looking out for your email, then… Wait, what was your name?” he asked, looking at the card.

 

“Orihime.  Oh, yeah. The card says Vega Highwell.  I use a stage name because can’t use my real name for these shows because I have a weird relative…”  she trailed off, acting like this was a normal occurrence for performers.

 

“Uh, okay, Vega.  That’s easier for me to say than the other one anyway.  Well, have a seat and Jesse will have your food and coffee out in a bit,” he said, turning his back to her.

 

She ate and left and visited a few more venues, most of which blew her off after taking her card.  She returned to campus after about two and a half hours and located her car in the student parking lot.  She found the older, dark gray Mazda5 and started it up, driving toward the part of town close to the freeway that had a lot of wedding venues.

 

These drop-ins were easier; she either was allowed to drop her card off and share the video she had taken on her phone of the lounge act with the staff member in charge of event coordination or she got their card and left hers at reception.  She finished her rounds at nearly a quarter after six and texted Ulquiorra.

  

  * __DONE!  FINALLY!  I can be back on campus in about fifteen minutes but I want to stop by my room first and then I can pick you up around quarter to seven.  Does that work? Missed you today._ _



 

 ***

 

He had taken another shower and carefully groomed himself. After that, he stood in his room in front of his closet with just a pair of underwear on. That was when Szayel came in.

 

“What is that--Oh my god.”

 

Ulquiorra turned his head and glared at his roommate. “What?”

 

“That’s what you’re hiding under those clothes?” Szayel asked.

 

This made Ulquiorra roll his eyes. “And? What of it?”

 

“I thought you were a twig. You know you could become my type.”

 

A baleful glare. “I think my girlfriend would chew you up and spit you out,” he said just as he heard his phone buzz. He walked over to the desk and picked up the device. “Speaking of girlfriends.”

 

“Why are all the cute ones straight?”

 

 -  _ _Sounds great. Szayel saw me in my underwear and is now hitting on me. DO NOT WANT. He has no ass. LOL jk. I don’t swing that way. Any idea how I should dress; we going casual or hobo wear?__

 

 She had just parked the car when she got his message.  She laughed and tapped out a reply as she walked to her dorm.

 

  * _You can’t blame him, I mean, he has eyes. But tell him to take a number.  As for dress… Casual. I want to take you to this coffee shop I visited today.  They have live music at night. But before that we can get something to eat that isn’t a panini.  I’m sick of cafe food._



 

She sent the message and went to her room.  She didn’t want to appear too much of a try-hard, so she just took a quick shower to rinse the day off of her body and then put on some fresh underwear and redressed in the clothes she had on before but added a necklace.  After touching up her makeup she went back down to her car and drove over to Robinson and texted him that she was waiting in the dark gray creeper van.  

 

Ulquiorra decided on black jeans, a dark green t-shirt and the thinnest leather jacket he owned. It was one that Steve had bought him as a graduation gift, telling him one day they would ride motorcycles as a family and Ulquiorra should have a sleek jacket.

 

Steve was an idiot at times. There was no way Ulquiorra was going to be getting on those death traps his dad’s boyfriend liked so much. He grabbed his phone, keys, and wallet, listening to Szayel jabber about something. “Don’t wait up,” he said to his roommate after giving himself a spritz of the cologne he liked to wear and fastening his watch onto his wrist.

 

“Wait!” Szayel said.

 

“What? I’m kinda behind.”

 

“Take a selfie. Remember how you look, because I will probably never tell you again that you look hot.”

 

He gave his roommate a disgruntled look before he did as the other male said. He stood in front of that full-length mirror that hung on the back of the door and snapped a couple of photos. He looked through them as he left the room and rode the elevator down to the lobby. It didn’t take long before he was outside the dorm, looking around for what Orihime described as her car. Ulquiorra decided to call her.

 

“Hello?” she answered in a cheerful, sing-song voice. “Are you coming out?  I can get out of the car and wait so you can see me.”

 

“I’m standing outside. I see no creeper van. You should have painted free candy on the side of it,” he said with a teasing tone.

 

So a Mazda5 wasn’t exactly a creeper van.  Whether it qualified as a van at all was questionable, but it was shaped like one.  A very, very small one. “Okay, I’m putting on my hazards and getting out, she said, stepping out of the car and walking around the front to the sidewalk.  “See me now?”

 

Ulquiorra finally saw the vehicle and then he saw her. She did look good. He took a deep breath before he moved over to the car. “This isn’t a creeper van. This is a soccer mom thing,” he said looking over Orihime’s set of wheels.

 

“It is not!  It’s practical!  I can fit me and five guys in here, or me and three guys and instruments.  Maybe four guys if they sit on laps. I don’t care; I drive. Hold on, back up a second,” she said, looking him up and down and then smiling.  She didn’t say anything, just smiled and nodded, appreciation apparent in her eyes, until she finally said, “Get in, Hotshot.”

 

“What a minute. What was that look for?” Ulquiorra asked. He was delighted with how she looked at him but he wanted to hear her say how he looked.

 

“You know what it’s for.  You look… how do I say this without making you blush?  Hmmm…. You look like some kinda stud.” Her first thought was the word fuckable but she didn’t want to terrify the poor boy.  However, she was definitely trying to make him blush.

 

The corners of his mouth turned up. “Some kinda stud? Okay. Here I was trying to impress you. Seems like it only kinda worked.” Ulquiorra leaned down and kissed her before he walked to the passenger side of the car.

 

Swoon.  Orihime had to blink before walking over to the driver’s side.  She got in and put her hand on Ulquiorra’s thigh and gave it a squeeze before putting the keys in the ignition.  “Buckle up, Sweetcheeks,” she said and chuckled.  

 

Ulquiorra thought he was in control of his hormones. He thought he would be able to behave in Orihime’s presence. As soon as she touched his thigh, he felt the familiar sensation of desire streak through his brain. He had to swallow. “So uh...” Jesus. His voice sounded deeper. Clearing his throat, he said, “So, uh, you found a coffee shop?”

 

“Yeah.  It’s not that far from campus; only about a twenty-minute walk in heels.  Faster if you aren’t a slave to fashion,” she said, checking over her shoulder and pulling away from the dorm.  She stopped talking for a minute as she thought she saw a flash of green hair near the entrance of the building.  Maybe it was just someone in a hoodie.

 

“Do you know how to drive? I didn’t know they let people of short stature behind the wheel,” he said, teasing her.  

 

“Hardy har har, Ulquiorra.  Super duper clever and original, you are,” she teased back.  “I can’t see over the dashboard but I assure you I am very good at guessing where oncoming traffic is.”

 

Orihime’s phone started ringing.  She kept it off silent mode when she drove.  She ignored it, then about twenty seconds after it stopped there was a tone indicating she had a voicemail.  About four seconds later a string of beeps with text notifications started.

 

“Hey, um, sorry.  That’s annoying. Do you want to pick that up and put it on silent, or maybe just check to see who that is?  I hope there’s nothing wrong,” she said, hoping it wasn’t who she thought it was.

 

“Sure,” he said. He picked up her phone from where it sat between the seats and tapped the screen. “That Michelle girl? You’ve got missed calls and texts from her.”

 

“Huh, I wonder what she wants,” Orihime said noncommittally, sighing silently.  She had a pretty good idea.

 

Ulquiorra was already in Orihime’s text messages. “Uh,” he said, drawing out the sound. These texts sounded like Michelle had a big problem with Orihime. “Did you do something to Michelle?”

 

“No, she was that girl that ditched me the day… the day we watched the Sorcerer’s Stone.”

 

“Wow, she must hold a--Wait… The same Michelle that’s Nel’s roomie?” Ulquiorra asked. “She has a grudge or a vendetta against you. Want to hear some of the texts or should I just delete them?”

 

Orihime laughed and shook her head.  “Ahhh, I better hear them, we’re in the same department.  Lay it on me,” she said, glancing at him with a knowing eyebrow raise.

 

“Okay, here goes. Uh, You’re not that pretty. You’re being an attention whore. You should hook up with someone in your own dorm, especially your lesbian roommate. Um, Ichigo probably doesn’t even like you. Bitch. Whore. Don’t give him herpes and the last one, keep your black hole vagina off my man.”

 

Orihime groaned.  “Good god, they aren’t even very creative. Well, the herpes one was inventive.  I’ve been tested, by the way,” she said, glancing at him again. “I’m clean. Anyway, I bet you ten bucks if you listen to that voicemail from her, Nel’s voice will be in the background.  You don’t have to listen though if you don’t want.”

 

His fingers tapped on Orihime’s app for her voicemail. He wanted to know what Nel was saying. He put it on speaker before pressing play. 

 

“Oh my god. Did you see him?”

 

“I saw him.”

 

“Why haven’t you snatched him away from her?”

 

“He’ll come running back once he realizes what a whore she is.”

 

“Did you hear that Orihime? As soon as Ichigo and--”

 

“Ulquiorra.”

 

“And Ulquiorra find out what a hack you are, they’ll drop you. You can’t even sing that good. The only reason you’re here is because you’re blowing or fucking Aizen and your stupid aunt paid for you to be here.”

 

“Bye, Whore.”

 

Orihime took a slow, mostly steady breath through her nostrils and put on a brave face.  She smiled. “Did they sound drunk to you, or was it just me?” she asked like it was a joke.

 

He shook his head. “No they sounded--Shit, she’s calling again. Do I answer?”

 

“Nel?”

 

“No, it’s Michelle. I’m answering it.”

 

“Okay…”

 

Ulquiorra pressed the circle that allowed him to answer the call and then pressed the speaker button. “Hello?”

 

There was squealing and shrieks in the background. “OH EM GEE!”

 

“Shhhh! Ulquiorra?”

 

“What Nel? Why are you calling Orihime’s phone?” he asked.

 

“I saw you leave with her. Michelle said she knew Orihime. I said I was sorry. I know you read my DMs today. I waited for a response,” Nel whined. “Please? Where are you going with her?”

 

Orihime swallowed down the acid that was creeping up her throat.  In a voice loud enough for Ulquiorra to hear but questionable in its ability to carry over the phone she asked him, “Does she always sound so whiny?”

 

Ulquiorra looked over at the woman with a stern expression, holding a finger up to his lips.

 

“Oh my god, is that her? Are you with her? Wait, that’s stupid of course you’re with her. You can’t seem to remove your head from Vega’s ass. Where are you going with her?”

 

“Is it really any of your business? Maybe we’re going to a hotel,” Ulquiorra snapped.

 

Michelle chimed in. “She’s like screwing like three other people. Everyone knows she’s slept with Aizen. She’s doing some drummer which is ewwww. She had to sleep with Ichigo to get him to agree to be her accompanist.”

 

Orihime snapped.  “Michelle, just because no one wants to get gonorrhea from you doesn’t mean they are handing it out to everyone else.  I didn’t sleep with any of those guys. Ew. No. Grow up and get your own dick.”

 

“Tch, bitch! You can’t sing anyway.”

 

“It really sounds like you’re both drunk and heaven forbid the third floor RA finds out,” Ulquiorra replied, fed up with the two females that lived in his dorm. “Underage drinking doesn’t look good.”

 

“He’s gay, you thirsty bitch!” Nel yelled before the call ended.

 

“Wow,” Orihime said after the silence settled in the car.  “Wow, those are some really, really sad people.”

 

Ulquiorra didn’t say anything for a few minutes. He was busy mulling over the texts and the conversation that was just had. “Yeah, Nel tends to lash out or get sad when she gets drunk. She’s not supposed to drink,” he said. “It’s crazy how much women hate other women.”

 

Orihime just raised her eyebrows and drove in silence for a while. After about five minutes she said, quietly, “I didn’t have sex with any of those guys.  I never even flirted with any of those guys.”

 

“You think I believe what those two said?”

 

Orihime’s face was already starting to color.  The silence that had hung between them had made her suspect the worst.  She shrugged and sniffed, focusing on the road. “I dunno, you didn’t say anything…”

 

He sighed. “Orihime, just because I don’t say something doesn’t mean I believe something. I’m trying to logically assess the situation. Those two were drunk and clearly are jealous of you and what we have,” Ulquiorra said. He reached across to place a hand on her thigh. “Look, I’m--I lo--I’m very taken with you. I would take your word over Nel’s any day.”

 

Orihime forced a smile and nodded.  She believed him but it wasn’t as easy to chase her negative emotions away.  “Thank you for saying that.”

 

“And, don’t take this the wrong way but you’re way too--You look at me like you’ve never seen a man before too much for me to believe that you’ve got three other side dudes.”

 

She sputtered out an unexpected burst of laughter at that.  “I’m that bad, huh? Here I thought I was playing it cool,” she said, laughing some more.

 

Ulquiorra laughed along with her but then his face grew serious. “I’m not gay,” he said. “Nel would make my dick limp.”

 

“I’ve dated gay guys before, Ulquiorra.  You don’t have to tell me you’re not gay,” she said, her voice sweet.  “You _really_ don’t have to worry about me thinking that.”

 

“I just wanted to make sure. I think you should know by now that I’m not,” he stated. “Any other concerns for today?”

 

She shook her head but then stopped.  “Just one, Italian or Asian fusion?”

 

Oooh, she was asking him to pick? “Asian fusion? I can make myself a can of ravioli any time.”

 

She laughed.  “You got it,” she said as she pulled into a mall parking lot which was lined with various eateries. 

 

“Here we go,” she said as she pulled into one with some impressive, generically-Asian looking statues of lions in front.  “Now, I’m not like Mrs. Moneybags or anything, but this place is within our socioeconomic parameters, and it’s my treat, so enjoy, my pretty,” she said, giggling to herself as she got out of the car.

 

Ulquiorra smiled at her. “It’s fine. Personally, I would have thought tacos were a treat, today. I had fast food for lunch.”

 

“Yeah?  I had a turkey sandwich at the coffee place I’m taking you to after this,” she said as she reached the door.

 

“I wanted fries. I got fries. Did you really want Asian? I mean we had it last week,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Yeah, I can eat it more than once a week, if pressed. This place has really good eggplant.  I want really good eggplant,” she said with narrowed eyes. 

 

His mouth twitched. He would not smile. It twitched again. He would not laugh. A third time it twitched. “I could give you some good eggplant,” he said with a straight face.

 

Her eyes slid over to his as she opened the door.  “I thought your eggplant wasn’t in season yet,” she said with a waiting expression. If he was going to serve dirty jokes, she would volley them back.

 

“You just killed the crop,” he said with a snort. Ulquiorra looked at her with half-lidded eyes. “Too bad for you, Veggs.”

 

“Oooh, harsh,” she said and then smiled.  “No matter. I’ve resigned myself to a frustrated autumn.  But… in the words of Ned Stark, winter is coming.”

 

“And what does that mean? Are you going to hole up with some warrior for the season?”

 

“We’ll see,” was all she said as she got to the hostess stand and asked for a table for two.  She got an electronic buzzer and was told to sit and wait for it to light up; there was about a ten-minute wait, which was pretty decent for a Saturday night.  She led the way to a bench and took a seat. “So how was the rest of your day?” she asked.

 

Ulquiorra sat down next to her with their thighs touching. “Uh, got through some practice runs on the songs. I thought about recording several songs so just in case I get sidetracked and fall behind I have at least a couple of videos to just upload.”

 

“Yay, I’m excited to hear something new,” she smiled up at his face and then her eyes fell down over his figure and then trailed to her own.  “You know, it almost looks like we planned this,” she said, returning her smile to his face.  

 

“Planned what? Our date?” he asked.

 

“No, our color-coordinated outfits. This is very Pinterest-worthy.  We should probably take some pictures.”

 

Ulquiorra wanted to shake his head. “You sound like Szayel. He told me to take some pics before I left.”

 

“You know what they say, Ulquiorra; never question a wise man with pink hair,” she chuckled, threading her hand around his arm and pulling out her phone.  “I know we say no faces, so we’ll just go with outfits. Oh, if you lean in it’ll make my boobs look awesome,” she advised.

 

He looked down at the top of her dress then back at her face. “We could go back to my room after this,” he said, taking her suggestion and leaning toward her. Ulquiorra gave her a kiss, wrapping his arm around her waist.

 

She returned it and took a picture while they kissed, then pulled away and leaned into him too, resting her head on his shoulder, and snapped a pic.  “These are good. These are really good. Your idea is really good. But I really want to take you to this other place…” she mildly whined. “I’m sending you these,” she said, texting him the two pictures she had just taken.

 

“It’s up to you,” he said. Ulquiorra was only somewhat disappointed she had said no to his idea but it was probably for the best. With how he was feeling he’d probably give in to her every wish. When his phone buzzed he studied the pics, nodding. “Agree. These are good.”

 

“Do you mind if I post them?”

 

The dark-haired man tilted his head to the side before he shook his head. “Go ahead and post them. You deserve some of the limelight.”

 

“Oh,” she said, smiling.  “I wasn’t going to tag you; I didn’t presume…”

 

“I see; ashamed of me?” he teased her. Instead of leaning over to kiss her, Ulquiorra pulled Orihime into his lap, capturing her mouth with his. “Tag me. I’m yours, Veggs.”

 

She grinned and nuzzled her nose against his cheek for a second.  “Ok, there we go,” she said after a minute. “Posted and tagged. Hashtag date night.”

 

Ulquiorra kissed her temple and then gave her body a squeeze. “I should post the selfies I took earlier.”

 

“Do it,” she said, feeling a bit giddy from the attention he was giving her.

 

Since his phone was already in front of his face and blocking what he actually looked like, Ulquiorra didn’t have to do anything to the pics he took before meeting Orihime that night. He filled out the captions and gave it the appropriate tags. He smiled at Orihime. “I’ve got date night, kept man, and happy as my tags.”

 

She pushed her shoulder into his chest.  “Kept man, eh? I like the sound of that.”

 

“You’re keeping me out of trouble,” he chuckled before tagging her in the pic. “There, posted.”

 

She pulled it up on her phone.  “Damn you look fine. We look fine. Really people should thank us for posting these,” she laughed.  “I’m kidding. But we do look good together. I think.” The buzzer in her hand lit up. “That’s us.”

 

“Get up then,” he said, patting her thigh. When he stood up, Ulquiorra was glad Orihime was standing in front of him. Damn body and damn hormones.

 

Orihime followed the hostess to the table and a waitress arrived slightly thereafter and took their drink orders. Orihime wasted no time to locate the eggplant dish she had been looking forward to.  “Mmm, there it is,” she said, her finger trailing under the menu entry’s name.

 

Gah! Why was he getting turned on from the way she was looking at food? This wasn’t natural. This wasn’t right. He scowled at his own menu. “Uh, Ginger Chicken and Broccoli looks good.”

 

“Yeah, it does.  You know what else looks good?  These long, uncut, silky, slick, slurpable long-life noodles.  Mmmm…” she practically moaned, then paused and snapped her menu closed, looking up at Ulquiorra and announcing, “too many carbs, though.”

 

His mouth drew into a thin line and he huffed some air out of his nose. “Keep doing that and you’re going to have your hands full later,” Ulquiorra said. “Once a week you can let loose can’t you?”

 

“This is letting loose.  The eggplant comes with rice.  And as you know, I really, really want the eggplant.”  She paused and looked at him with a raised brow. “What are my hands going to be full of, praytell?”

 

Ulquiorra pulled his phone out of his pocket and then sent Orihime a text with a picture attached. He stared at her with an intense gaze. “That,” he said when he heard her phone go off.

 

Orihime looked at her phone and quickly flipped it over after seeing the dick pic he had previously sent her flash on her screen.  Blushing, she said, “I may save room for dessert then, just in case,” then winked at him.

 

She actually winked.  God, she was a dork. She closed her eyes and shook her head at herself.  Oh well, he’d seen worse.

 

“Who is flustered now?” Ulquiorra asked with a sly smirk on his face. He was enjoying this; enjoying seeing her blush and the little expressions of affection she allowed him to have.

 

She tipped her chin up in defiance, but admitted, “Me, that’s who.  Here comes our waitress, so behave for a minute, won’t you?”

 

He let his face drop into a stoic expression. “Maybe,” he said in a flat tone.

 

The waitress came and took their orders, deposited drinks on the table and left them in peace.  “Alright, misbehaving may recommence,” Orihime said, slipping a foot out of her shoe and tapping his calf with it.

 

“Hmmm? You know I have longer legs than you, right? Don’t play games that you can’t win, Veggs.” Ulquiorra smiled at her before taking a sip of his iced tea.

 

“Oh, I reckon I’d win either way.  Anyway, if you don’t want to play we can talk about something else.  I went to a lot, and I mean a _lot_ of places today.”

 

Oh no. She wasn’t going to get away with that. He lifted his foot and put the toe against the front of her seat. “Did you get anywhere; make any progress?”

 

“I did,” she said, raising an eyebrow at him.  I went to all the hotels with banquet rooms and met with or dropped my card off with the event coordinators, and I met this guy at the coffee shop I’m taking you to later.  He’s interested in hearing one or both of us play some covers. He nearly skipped the whole ‘let me hear what you play’ thing after I told him what,” she paused as she felt his toe on her inner thigh and cleared her throat, “what music I want to do.”

 

“The coffee shop thing is what we would be doing together, right? We could just link him to some youtube videos,” Ulquiorra said. He let his toe slide higher up her thigh.

 

An awkward laugh.  “We could, but then you’d be outing yourself.  Maybe we can record something this weekend; we did that Foo Fighters song pretty well, we could reprise that.”

 

“We could do that. You could help me sing _Every You, Every Me_ too.”

 

“Ooh, I like that idea,” she said.  Emboldened by his willingness, she picked up her foot and trailed it along the inside of the leg he had pointed in her direction, snaking it up as far as she could go and biting her lip with a mischievous glint in her eyes.  “You’re right, I’m going to have to go under the table to win this game. I concede.”

 

“It doesn’t work like that Orihime. You started this and I plan on finishing it and winning. Maybe tonight is the night, you never know,” Ulquiorra said. He stared at her for a moment before he blinked several times. “Next week we’re watching Prisoner of Azkaban, right?”

 

“Yes,” she said, spreading her legs under the stretchy skirt of her dress apart wide enough for him to get his foot to her belly if he wanted.  He was talking big tonight, and this was an unspoken dare to see how far he’d go.

 

One side of his mouth rose and Ulquiorra blushed. He worried his bottom lip between his teeth before he decided to rise to her challenge. He nudged her legs with his foot, letting it rest against the apex of her thighs. His brow rose as if to say, “Now what?”

 

Orihime rose her brows and shoulders as if to say, “I dunno,” then opened her mouth in realization, crossing her thigh over his foot, trapping it there.

 

He grimaced and then scowled. “What the hell?” Ulquiorra asked. He hadn’t expected her to do that. Maybe he had taken things too far.

 

The color drained from Orihime’s face when she realized she had miscalculated this badly, her stomach falling to her seat.  She quickly uncrossed her legs and sat up straight, pressing her knees tightly together. “Sorry,” she murmured, looking down at her hands.

 

Dammit, he screwed up again. “Hey, I was joking. You had a pretty tight squeeze on my foot,” he said quietly.

 

She looked up slowly, “Sorry,” she repeated, cringing.  “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

 

Ulquiorra reached across the table and held out his hand. “I’m sorry. I’m in public; I should know how to act and behave like a gentleman. Gryffindor in the streets and all that.”

 

That made her smile.  And giggle. She took his hand and gave it a small squeeze as their food came.  Her eyes rose and widened as the smell hit her nostrils. “Come to Mama,” she whispered.

 

Their tender moment was over for some hot dish. Ulquiorra scoffed. “More like--” he bit his tongue to keep from saying the rest of the dirty thought that was perched on his lips. He just told himself to be a gentleman. “I’d like to Slytherin your sheets though.”

 

Her head tipped back a bit and she laughed, showing her teeth.  “We can do that later if you want, at a time and date to be determined.”  She brought her eyes to his and smiled easily. This was fun, flirting and being out with him.  There was no reason to feel pressured to do anything or not do anything.

 

“Later after coffee.” Ulquiorra stabbed a piece of chicken and brought it to his mouth, biting into it. It tasted like heaven with enough ginger to be tolerable.

 

She smiled at that and asked, “How’s the chicken?  The eggplant is awesome,” putting some in her mouth and squirming a seated little happy dance.

 

He was about to take another bite but stopped. “Want to try some?” he asked holding the piece of chicken out to her.

 

“Yes, please,” she said, rising out of her seat a bit and bringing her mouth to the offered bite.  Once it was in her mouth, she sat back down and chewed, nodding. “That’s really good. I’d feed you some eggplant but it’s too sloppy.  I’ll pass you the bowl, though.”

 

He smiled and shook his head. “Never been a fan of eggplant. Steve cooked it one time and it was bitter and gross.”

 

She sighed and shook her head.  “Just because something wasn’t good one way doesn’t mean it’s not good another.  This is anything but bitter or gross. But if you don’t want to give it a shot it’s your loss,” she said, pulling the bowl closer in her own direction.

 

“Maybe I’ll order it the next time we go on a date,” Ulquiorra said. He was making a lot of assumptions with that statement.

 

“Alright.  I’m going to hold you to that, you know.”  He worried for nothing. Orihime’s feelings for Ulquiorra were only growing stronger.  If she cared more about getting hurt, it would scare her. But, for the moment at least, she was enjoying this and nothing was going to bring her down.  Not after the thing with Michelle and Nel earlier; she was resolved to have fun tonight.

 

“Okay.”


	11. The Setlist

“There is nowhere to park down here… I’m going to have to find a spot down a side street,” Orihime said as they passed Chad’s coffee place, looking for a place to leave her car.  Dinner had gone great and they sat and talked while they waited for the check to come, which Orihime swiped from the waitress and slipped her debit card into before Ulquiorra had a chance to protest.

 

“Find a parking garage or just a spot. We can walk, can’t we? Honestly Woman, it’s Saturday night in a huge city.” Ulquiorra knew he was stating the obvious. Although he lived in a small town about eighty miles away from where OSU was, he knew how busy the place could get. “You said you lived in San Francisco. You should know big cities are clusterfucks.”

 

“I barely remember it.  And Minneapolis can get hairy too but usually, I’m not the one driving.  Aunt Claire always had me book us UBERs or whatever. These garages are expensive, I’m just going to pull off back here,” she said, going down a side street and eventually finding a spot to parallel park about a block and a half away.  “This is fine, right?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. “I walked over a mile today for a greasy burger and fries. I need the exercise,” he said.

 

She smiled and leaned over the center console to kiss him after turning the car off.  “I don’t see any part of you that needs improvement,” she said after she leaned back.

 

“You sure? Maybe an inspection is in order,” came his reply. Ulquiorra wanted to lean over and kiss her again but didn’t. There were a lot of things he wanted to do to her but didn’t. It was his own misgivings that were making him hesitate. “So we’re just here for coffee and to talk to someone?”

 

“Well if whoever’s playing is good we can hang out and enjoy the music, but if they suck we can just take off when we’re done,” Orihime said, opening her door.  She stepped out of the car and shivered. It was a cool night and they were near the river. “Wow, it’s a lot colder down here than it was up by the mall,” she commented, locking the car door.  She stood on her tiptoes and hopped a bit to see Ulquiorra’s head over the top of the car. “Shall we?” she asked, coming around to the sidewalk.

 

“You want my jacket?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

“I’ve already got one on, so it seems like overkill; plus I don’t want you getting cold, but thank you. We could just stand really close together.”

 

He pulled her closer, slinging an arm around her shoulder. He wasn’t one to deny anyone a request, especially her. “I really enjoyed dinner,” he said to her.

 

“Good,” she said, grinning up to him.  She liked this. She liked feeling like he was glad to have anyone see that they were together.  She liked feeling like he was part of… Were they there yet? Were they a ‘we’?  

 

“I hope you like the coffee at this place.  The atmosphere is nice, kind of grungy and has a real… almost sexy vibe. Makes me feel like I’m cooler than I am when I go in there,” she said, giggling.

 

Ulquiorra shrugged. He probably would like if it had a casual, laid-back atmosphere. “Hush your mouth,” he grumbled slightly. “You are cool. You’re cool to me.”

 

She hummed and put a palm on his abdomen, just to have another point of contact.  They turned a corner and were on the main road then, only half a block from the coffee spot.  “There it is, up there. It’s called Sado’s.”

 

This place definitely had the aura of a coffee house but the inside was practically packed with bodies. “Either the music is good or the coffee is awesome,” he said looking through the windows as they walked past.

 

“The coffee was good, but not _that_ good.  I wonder who’s playing,” she said as they reached the door.

 

Ulquiorra pulled the door open for Orihime and let her go in first before entering after her.

 

The sounds of an acoustic trio playing “In Da Club” on an upright bass, an eclectic set of drums, and a guitar filled the space  Orihime grinned and looked at Ulquiorra with an excited expression as she entered, and almost immediately her shoulders started swaying back and forth slightly.  She had to bite back a squeal; she was loving this. She pointed to the counter and in the process caught Chad’s eyes. She jumped and waved at the tall man.

 

“Hi Vega,” the man rumbled as they got to the counter.  “This the boyfriend?”  

  
“Yes,” she answered.  “Chad, this is Ulquiorra Cifer, Ulq, this is Chad Sado, he’s the guy I was telling you about.”

 

“Hey,” Ulquiorra said as he sized the man up. He was a big guy and had a surprisingly gentle voice.

 

“Hey, do you have something for me, or are you here for coffee?”  Chad asked.  

 

“We’re working on it.  We’ll have it soon, though.  These guys are great! Who are they?”

 

“Peter, Paul and Larry,” Chad responded without a trace of irony.

 

Orihime bit her lip and made wide eye contact with Ulquiorra.  “So, I’ll have a black coffee with skim milk,” she said. “How about you?”

 

“Cappuccino, please.” Ulquiorra looked around the space and then back at this Sado guy. “I have some stuff you can hear but nothing with us singing together.”

 

“Jesse, black with skim and a capp,” Chad said over his shoulder to a woman with dreadlocks.  He turned back to Ulquiorra. “Great. Can you email it to me? My card is at the other register but otherwise, Vega has it.”

 

“I can do you one better,” he replied.

 

“How so?” the big guy asked, one brown eye poking through his long bangs.

 

“I’m on YouTube.” Ulquiorra took a card out of his wallet and handed it to Sado. It had the pertinent information on it.

 

“Obscuras four?  Sounds kind of familiar.  Alright, I’ll have a listen later and let you know.  Jesse will pass you your drinks over there. Enjoy the show tonight,” Chad said with a small smile, gesturing to a spot on the other side of the coffee bar.

 

“Thanks, Chad,” Orihime said with a bright smile and then made her way to the spot he had gestured toward.  She turned her back toward the counter so she could watch the performers and danced in place, her body twisting slowly to the adagio pace at which the ensemble played the club song.

 

Ulquiorra looked at Orihime and sighed. He leaned down to whisper, “He doesn’t seem all that interested.”

 

“He’s just kind of an underwhelming guy, I think, and he’s pretty busy tonight,” she said, smiling up at him and kissing his jaw before he had a chance to straighten up.

 

“If their cappuccino is crap we’re leaving,” he whispered in her ear, letting his hands trail up her sides and under her jacket.

 

She hummed and nodded, maneuvering in front of him and taking his hands, placing them to rest over her hip bones as she continued to sway slightly.  It was not overly sexual or obscene; anyone who might have glanced over would just think they were enjoying each other’s closeness and the music.

 

That’s not what it felt like to either of them, though.

 

He had to bite back a hiss. The movement of her body against him was enough that he just wanted to bend her over the counter and have his way with her, rubbing against her until he came. Ulquiorra didn’t want to stop her though because it felt good and Orihime seemed like she was having a nice time. “You know what you’re doing to me, right?” He asked his mouth against her ear.

 

“I have an idea,” she answered, not stopping.

 

“That’s how bad you want it?”

 

She turned her face and cupped her mouth to his ear, replying, “ You have no idea.  But this is just a little something to keep you interested.”

 

To keep him interested? She had no clue. Ulquiorra took one of her hands and glanced around before he put her fingers against the front of his jeans. “Not interested at all. Can’t you tell?”

 

She smiled and turned her head again to speak to him, “Well, you’re interested in something.  There’s lots to look at here. I’m just making sure I’ve got your attention,” she said as she took a step back, pressing her ass into his legs and pushing her hand flat against his erection.

 

Ulquiorra’s fingers dug into Orihime’s hips. “Keep it up and we’ll ruin the seats in your car.”

 

“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” she murmured, before they were interrupted.

 

“Black and skim and cappuccino?”

 

Ulquiorra lifted his head and lifted a hand to signal to the person that those were their drinks. “How much?” He asked.

 

“Eight;” came the answer.

 

Ulquiorra paid and handed Orihime her drink. He was half hoping that the cappuccino sucked so they could leave.

 

“Orihime!” 

 

The woman’s head snapped in the direction of the voice that had called her name.  She didn’t see anyone familiar at first, so she took a sip of coffee.

 

“Hey, Orihime, don’t be rude,” the voice said, and then she saw the distinct shade of orange that could only belong to her accompanist. 

 

“Ichigo?” 

 

“Yeah,” the pianist said, finally coming through the line of people between them and dragging a tall blonde along with him.  “I didn’t know you came to Sado’s. How’s the hunt for a gig coming?” He didn’t acknowledge Ulquiorra, nor did he introduce his date.

 

“I made a lot of contacts today.   I should know something soon. Who’s this?”  she asked, smiling at the taller woman.

 

“Oh, yeah, Orihime, Kailey, Kailey, Orihime, and… some dude I don’t know,” he said, pointing to Ulquiorra, and then shrugging like it didn’t matter. “Orihime is the vocalist I was telling you about.”

 

“My name is _Hailey_ ,” the blonde grumbled but nodded at Orihime and Ulquiorra with a strained smile.

 

“This is my boyfriend, Ulquiorra,” Orihime said in a somewhat scolding tone, before taking another sip of her coffee and leaning her head back toward him a bit, to emphasize the point.

 

Hailey smiled a bit wider, then turned to Ichigo.  “So, Ichigo, should we go order some drinks?”

 

“Go ahead and get yourself something, Babe, I’ve got business,” he said, effectively dismissing her but giving her ass a tap as she walked away.

 

Orihime scowled at the exchange but turned her face back to Ichigo.  “What kind of business?”

 

“Well, I was approached about playing a wedding in two weeks.  Apparently, the bride booked some guy on the internet but she heard him play at another wedding last week and he was awful.  There are a couple of pieces that have voice, and I don’t sing. I could throw a couple of bucks your way if you want to do it.”

 

“Um, text or call me about it tomorrow, okay?” Orihime replied.  “Don’t you have a date to get back to?” she said, trying to play it off like she was being friendly, but really she found his lack of manners appalling.

 

“She’ll find her way back,” Ichigo said, not at all bothered.  “We’re going to Tier’s after this. Are you going?”

 

“No,” Orihime answered over her cup of coffee.

 

“Oh, is it because of what Michelle said about us?  I didn’t say anything,” he said as if he was denying any culpability.

 

“Well, I should hope not.  Wait, how many people are talking about that? You denied it though, right?” Orihime asked with a slight edge.

 

“Uh, yeah, of course,” the carrot-top replied, his eyes scanning the crowd, presumably for his date.

 

There was something about this orange-haired guy that Ulquiorra did not like but he didn’t say anything. He just sipped on the drink in his hand. It was good, to his dismay. “If you want to go to this party, don’t let me stop you Orihime. Making connections is important.”

 

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to go today with all these rumors flying around.  The last thing I need is a real-life bitch fight if that Michelle girl is there. What if she drags Nel along? I may not make it back alive,” she said, with a self-deprecating laugh.

 

He knew how the teal-haired woman operated. There was no chance Nel would show up to a party. It wasn’t her style but she was also drinking so anything could happen. “Did you want to go then?”

 

“No,” the auburn-haired woman turned her face back to Ichigo. “You’ll tell people the truth, _right_?” she asked, the threat of pain, should he not do this, heavily implied.

 

“Er, right.  I’ll see you around, Orihime.  Nice to meet you, um… Oliver?”

 

“It’s Ulquiorra but thanks for the sentiment, Ivanhoe.”

 

Ichigo actually laughed and raised an appreciative brow at Ulquiorra for that comeback, nodded, and went back into the crowd.

 

Orihime watched him leave with narrowed eyes, thinking about her situation.  She didn’t actually think Ichigo would spread rumors about her but she wasn’t sure she could trust him to clear her name, either.  After a minute she sighed and took another sip of her coffee. “Do you want to sit down and finish this or stand here where we can see the band?” she asked Ulquiorra.

 

“You look like you want to sit down, so we can do that,” Ulquiorra said. All the playfulness of earlier seemed to be drained from Orihime. He sighed. “We can stand here too, you decide.”

 

She turned and leaned against him.  “Let’s stay here for a minute.”

 

“Hey,” a deep voice said from behind them.

 

Ulquiorra turned his attention away from Orihime and looked at Sado. “Yeah?”

 

“Do you have a minute to come to the back?”

 

What? Why? Ulquiorra looked down at Orihime, raising an eyebrow. “Uh, yeah,” he said.

 

Chad waved for the pair to follow and turned around, following the length of the bar to a doorway that was only closed of to the main area by a set of curtains.  He held one side open and waited for Ulquiorra and Orihime to reach him, then let them enter first. After they had entered what looked like a small kitchen area, he took a left into an office that had a desk and a beat-up sofa.  “Have a seat,” the big guy offered, as he pulled an office chair to the side of the desk, not letting the heavy piece of furniture stand as a barrier between them.

 

Ulquiorra sat down and pulled Orihime down beside him. He held her hand. His nerves were being wound tight. He didn’t like situations where there was uncertainty.

 

Chad had a laptop open. He turned it around to show an internet browser open to an ObscurasIV YouTube video, which was paused.  It was the Hallelujah video, which currently stood at nearly one million views. “Are you serious? This is you, dude?” Chad asked, his voice more animated than it had been in the cafe.

 

Oh. Oh. The guy had watched the video. Ulquiorra nodded. “I can prove it,” he said. 

 

Chad was a pretty open-minded guy.  He trusted people until they gave him a reason not to.  But this… this seemed like a big discovery. He was having a hard time accepting that it could happen to him.  “I mean, yeah, man, show me,” he said, the beginnings of a smile at the corners of his mouth.

 

“Anything you want to hear or do you want me to sing the video you’re watching?”

 

“That would be awesome,” Chad said, that smile automatically dropping into an easy grin as he leaned back in his chair.  “Do you need a guitar or something? I have one back here.”

 

A nod from Ulquiorra. He could sing it acapella but he wasn’t Imogen Heap and thought he didn’t sound that good without music to go along with than instrument to accompany his voice. “I mean I can sing without it; it’s not a big deal.”

 

“Naw, man, here,” he said, reaching behind him and pulling out a well-used Yamaha, passing it to Ulquiorra.  “It shouldn’t be too out of tune.” He looked at Orihime after Ulquiorra took it and smiled at her like they were in for a treat.

 

Orihime giggled.  “After he does that, I have a simpler way to prove his identity.”  She didn’t want to dampen the excitement of this moment. Everyone in the room seemed to be on pins and needles.

 

Ulquiorra strummed the guitar a few times before he slightly turned one of the knobs at the top. Repeating the action, he was more satisfied with the sound. He put the strap around his shoulder and neck and then stood. His fingers did a few riffs of the song before Ulquiorra looked at both of them, his face starting to turn pink. “Uh, ready?”

 

Chad nodded. Orihime gave his knee a reassuring pat and beamed a smile at him.

 

Five minutes later he finished saying the final “Hallelujah”. Ulquiorra tried not to let his voice break on the verse that it always did but it was useless. He was such a baby sometimes. “So, sorry if I killed your ears,” he said, pulling the guitar off his body and handing it to the other guy.

 

Chad let him hold it for a second while his wits returned to him, then reached out and pursed his lips, taking the guitar and turning his back to them.  He stood that way for a while.

 

Orihime pulled on Ulquiorra’s hand.  “That was amazing,” she mouthed. There were tears in her eyes.

 

“No it wasn’t,” he muttered sitting back down. “It was pitchy and I fumbled.”

 

“Dude,” Chad had cut Ulquiorra off.   The big guy paused and his shoulders rose and fell.  “Dude,” he repeated, “you have to warn me before you rip my heart out of my chest,” Chad turned, wiping an eye with the back of his hand.  “What you call pitchy and fumbly is what I call evocative and sincere. I can’t believe this… I mean you sound good in the video but live is just… wow.  You have a gift, man. You touched me.” Chad huffed out a breath and then took a sharp breath and huffed one more time. “Don’t mind me though, I am a sentimental bastard.  So, Vega, what was this simple proof?”

 

“Oh,” Orihime said, shaking her head to clear it and pulling up Ulquiorra’s Instagram on her phone.  “We took this tonight. You’ll recognize the clothes.” She held the phone out to Chad.

  
“Heh, no shit?  So this was the boyfriend you were talking about.  Well, whenever you want to play we’d be happy to have you, Obscuras.  Do you go by that?”

 

“Uh I do but, no one knows my face. I don’t want to put it out there yet. I was hoping that Orihime and I could be an act together.”

 

Chad scratched his chin and tilted his head toward the woman, his eyes on Ulquiorra’s.  “She any good?”

 

“She has one video on Youtube. She can sing Foo Fighters like it’s no one’s business. I wouldn’t be so smitten with her if she couldn’t sing.”

 

Orihime shook her head and laughed.  “I can pull up the video if you want, Chad.”

 

“No… I believe you… actually, no. I wanna hear this.  Go ahead,” Chad said, offering her access to the laptop. 

 

Orihime smiled shyly and blushed as she stood up and bent over the desk slightly, searching for her channel, then clicked the video.  “Here it is. Please disregard the guitar playing; I don’t plan to play in public any time soon.”

 

Chad chuckled and clicked the play button.  He got about halfway through the song and stopped it.  “Yeah, this is nice Vega. Well, I told you I have an opening next week, didn’t I?  Let me look at the schedule.” He turned the laptop so it was facing him more directly.  “Yep. Thursday at nine. That work?”

 

Orihime looked at Ulquiorra expectantly.

 

“That’s works for me. How long is the set?”

 

“Ninety minutes with a fifteen-minute break.”

 

“I guess we need to start practicing, Orihime.”

 

She nodded at him.  She didn’t want to say anything but she was a little nervous.  Besides that time in the practice room they had never sung together before.  “Yep, no problem!” she added, smiling at Chad. Talk about fake it til you make it.

 

“Great.  I’ll put it in the books.  We advertise on social media mostly, so I’ll put it in tonight.  Send me a little bio blurb and the name of your act before midnight, okay?  I want to promote your set a little. Also a picture. Whatever you want, faces or no, just make it representative.  That work?”

 

That made Ulquiorra slightly nervous. “Uh, I’m sure we could do that, right?” It was a good thing they had stuff to work on tonight.

 

“Not a problem.  Thank you so much, Chad,” Orihime said, standing and taking control of the situation. “Please, though, don’t tell anyone about Obscuras slash Ulquiorra.  It’s really important that this news comes out in his own time. He’ll be sure to let everyone know he got his live performance start here, right Ulquiorra?”

 

“Yeah,” the green-eyed man said.

 

Chad nodded.  “Yeah, I can do that.  Far be it from me to push budding talent prematurely, right?” He smiled and walked toward the door of the office, opening it.  Orihime walked through and Ulquiorra followed behind her. Before he reached the threshold, though, Chad’s enormous hand fell onto his shoulder and the big man leaned down a bit to tell him, “You have a lot of potential, dude.  Don’t get bogged down. I mean she’s good in her own right, but you… You’re special.”

 

“Uh, thanks. I’ll think it over.” Ulquiorra said with a strained smile and shrugged off Chad’s hand. He found Orihime seconds later. “Let’s go.”

 

Orihime led the way out of the coffee shop and onto the street.  Once the door behind them had closed, she spun around, squealing in excitement, and grabbed Ulquiorra by the elbows.  She stood up on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on him and stood back down. “Can you believe that?!? That was awesome!!  You were so good! Oh my god!” She seemed absolutely ecstatic.

 

He was going to tell Orihime what that Chad guy said but decided not to. She was riding the high of the moment. This was big for her and he would be an ass to dampen her enthusiasm. “I was okay,” he said, pulling her in the direction of the car. “We have a lot of work to do though. I’m canceling Netflix and Chill night until further notice.”

 

Orihime sighed.  He was right, but this reality sucked.  “Okay, boss.”

 

***

 

The ride back to his dorm was spent with Ulquiorra sitting in the passenger seat thinking. He didn’t really want fame anymore. He was happy just being some anonymous singer on the internet. He knew it was somewhat of a dream of Orihime’s to be known. At least he thought that was what she wanted. But that coffeeshop guy telling him to not get bogged down didn’t sit well with him. It would be shitty to take the gig and leave Orihime behind. “Are you coming up?” he asked as she parked.

 

“Well, yeah, we have to decide on a name for our act and do a “bio blurb” and decide on a picture or take a picture in the next two hours.”

 

“I was just asking,” he said as he got out of the vehicle. Ulquiorra waited for her to get out of the car and once she was out, he grabbed her hand. “You’ve done it, Veggs.”

 

She smiled at him.  “Done what?”

 

“You’ve got yourself a show.”

 

“Ah, ha ha, no.  _You_ got us a show.  I just did the legwork.”  Her initial buzz was starting to die down.  She was feeling the uneasy vibes swirling around Ulquiorra.  “Hold on a second, are you just doing this for me?”

 

He gave a shake of his head. “Not really I said I would try it out,” he said. Ulquiorra brought her hand to his mouth and gave it a kiss. “If it gets to be too much or it gets in the way of other things--I’m not doing it just for you. I want to know what it’s like to perform live.”

 

Orihime relaxed.  “Good. I think it’s a good experience no matter what.”

 

With a smile, he pulled her through the dorm lobby and stood to wait for the elevators. “We could go with Vega IV.”

 

“Hmm... I like it.  Short is good.” She realized that could be taken more than one way, looking down at herself and laughing.  “I mean, exhibit A,” she said, gesturing to herself and laughing harder.

 

He chuckled. “Short is good. Okay, so we have a potential name--” Ulquiorra paused as the doors open and several people spilled out of the elevator. When the coast was clear, he got into the lift. “A ninety-minute set though.”

 

“Don’t worry about it.  I know all your songs. We can work on the Foo Fighters one.  Maybe we can throw in some Weez and Oasis or some easier new stuff.  I mean, this isn’t Rockefeller Center. It’s a coffee shop. We should work hard and do our best but we shouldn’t stress too much.”

 

She was quiet for a minute as she considered the more pressing issue of their midnight deadline.  “You know, we could totally fabricate our bio. I mean, we can both use aliases and make up a story of how we started playing together.  It’s an option, anyway. Might protect your anonymity better.”

 

He raised an eyebrow. “I’ll leave that up to you. I mean I could break the internet tonight and post a face pic. I just… I know the attention would get worse,” Ulquiorra said.

 

She nodded.  “Don’t do it if you don’t like it.  At the end of the day, it’s about making yourself happy.  If the attention doesn’t make you happy, by all means, do. Not. Do. It.”

 

“It’s not that it doesn’t make me happy. The comments drive me fucking crazy. “Oh you’re so hot” or “I want to have my way with you". Like who says that?” Ulquiorra scowled for a second before smoothing his face out. “I’m also shy. I don’t know if you got that. I’d rather be a wallflower than the life of the party.”

 

She smiled at him and threaded her fingers through his.  “I got it. I like that about you. I’m similar. The rumors weren’t the only reason I didn’t want to go to that party tonight.” She paused a moment, chewing on her lip and thinking.  “What you need is a staff,” she said with half-smile. “People to screen your comments for you. Only show you the good stuff.”

 

He scoffed. Nel did that for him. She would mock the people who left desperate comments and tell him all the good ones. She always read out Vega’s comments. “Yeah, well, I fired my intern for that. Maybe if I get any bigger I’ll try to find someone who could be my social media manager,” he replied.  
  
The doors of the elevator opened to the tenth floor and the couple got out. Ulquiorra was not surprised to find his room empty when he unlocked and opened the door. “Do you want something comfortable to wear or you okay looking like Jessica Rabbit?”

 

“Jessica Rabbit?!’ she said, sounding shocked and offended, but simultaneously losing her jacket and tossing her hair to the side, so that it had a sloppy, deep side part.  “I’m not bad, I’m just drawn that way,” she mimicked the animated character’s voice as she leaned over and pressed her breasts together, then stood and laughed.

 

“That’s not nice,” he said with a frown. Ulquiorra had watched everything she just did with rapt attention. Why had that Weasley-looking motherfucker come along and ruined the mood tonight? “I can offer a t-shirt and shorts or a pair of sweats. You’re going to be here for a while.”

 

“Am I bothering you?  I’m not uncomfortable.  I know we’re supposed to be focused on the gig, but… I don’t…  I want to be me, you know?”

 

“I get that,” he said. “Just don’t be surprised if I, uh, you know.” He blushed.

 

“Okay.  So we are Vega IV.  Do you have a notebook or something?”

 

Ulquiorra walked over to his desk and grabbed a fresh notebook from a stack and a pen. They went sailing onto his bed. “I’m gonna get changed while you’re writing stuff down,” he said, kissing the top of her head before he walked over to his closet.

 

“Hey wait,” she said.  “Turn around once.”

 

Glancing over his shoulder, Ulquiorra gave Orihime a hard stare for a second before doing what she asked. “Why?”

 

“Because you look awesome and I wanted to appreciate it one more time before you changed.”  She looked him up and down, three times, inhaled slowly, and then looked back down at the notebook. “Okay, I think I have it memorized.”

 

A smirk played over his lips. If Ulquiorra wasn’t so particular he would have performed a striptease for Orihime but things needed to be hung up and put into their proper place. After taking off his shoes and putting them into the bottom of the closet, and peeling off his leather jacket and making sure it was hung up, Ulquiorra peeled off his jeans and t-shirt he wore before grabbing a pair of sweats from the plastic portable dresser things he had brought with him. After he put those on he went back over to his laptop and tapped a few keys to wake it up. “Okay, songs.”

 

“All My Life.”

 

“You’re going to sing that for ninety minutes?”

 

“Yes,  constant loop.  No breaks. No, come on.  You’re part of this act. I pick one, you pick one.”

 

“You’re a dork but you’re a dork that I lo--like.” Ulquiorra scrolled through a spreadsheet of videos he had recorded and looked through them. He switched to a different tab, finding nothing he wanted to reprise. “Uh, Under the Bridge.”

 

“Nice.  Do you know _Don’t Look Back in Anger_?”

 

“Yes and we can do any Oasis song, except _Wonderwall_.”

 

Orihime snickered. “Okay.  Next?”

 

“Think you could sing Smashing Pumpkins?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

“Yes. I’ve done _Disarm_ and _Tonight, Tonight_.”

 

He turned from the laptop and stared at the female. She knew two of his favorite songs? “ _Tonight, Tonight_. _Disarm_ is for more intimate settings.”

 

For some reason, what he said made her feel warm.  “Okay, _Tonight, Tonight_ ,” she said in a softer than usual voice.  “Let me think a second… How do you feel about Metallica? It’s a bit of a departure but we could do a pretty _Nothing Else Matters._ ”

 

“As long as it’s not _One_ , we’re good. I don’t relish the idea off my fingers falling off after playing a song. Uh, _Buddy Holly_?”

 

“No.  No Weezer singles.  And I don’t want to sing _Say it Ain’t So_ with you.  Maybe in karaoke, but that’s it. We could duet it in _I Just Threw Out the Love of My Dreams_ , or _Jamie_ , or _Why Bother_ , or _The Good Life_ , or _Only in Dreams_ , or all of the above…”

 

“I’ve played enough Rockband to pass on _Say It Ain’t So_. _The Sweater Song_ is out. _My Name is Jonas_?”

 

“Are you vetoing my suggestions?  Okay. _My Name is Jonas_ is fine. Also, FYI, I suck at Rockband.”

 

“Not vetoing, just adding suggestions. One Weezer song per set, Woman.”

 

“Okay I’ll write them all down as one entry and we can decide later.  What about something that was originally sung by a woman? _Ode to My Family_?  _Zombie_?”

 

His mouth pulled to the side. “Add _Linger_ and _When You’re Gone_ to that list.”

 

She nodded.  “What are we at now?  Seven. Need more. Do you have any more from your computer?”

 

Ulquiorra turned back to the laptop and scrolled through his list. “Uh, Staind, Nirvana, No Doubt. Slipknot? Probably not your cup of tea. Um, Hawthorne Heights, My Chemical Romance? There’s over two-hundred songs I want to sing.” 

 

“Pick one from each.  If I can’t sing it, you can and I can do harmony or back up or keyboard.”

 

“Wait! We could totally sing _Broken_ ,” he said with a smile. He was teasing.

 

“What?  Why not?”

 

“It’s was a popular song. Seether is lame. I was being sarcastic.”

 

“Who cares?  We could work on it and make it fresh.  Maybe not for this show… but keep in in your back pocket?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. “Put it down as a potential choice. Okay for the other bands...”

 

She nodded.  “I have a radical suggestion.  How open-minded are you?”

 

He never liked those kinds of questions. “Why?”

 

“I kind of want to sing _Closer_.”

 

Ulquiorra’s spine stiffened. There was only one song he knew called that. Imagining Orihime singing the chorus was an attempt at making the logic side of his brain shut down. He reached down between his legs and had to adjust himself. “That would be fine,” he stated.  

 

She smiled and wrote it down, wiggling her shoulders a bit, pleased that he agreed.  After she had written it she brought her head up and asked, “You were saying, about the other bands?”

 

“ _Whore_ , by In this Moment.”

 

“Might be fitting, given current circumstances, but I don’t think I’ve heard it.  Can I listen?”

 

Shit. How was it that he managed to put his foot in his mouth?  She didn’t look upset though. She looked curious. “Let me pull up the video,” Ulquiorra said and did just that.

 

She came around to his desk and stood behind him as the video played.  She liked the guitar line. By the time the chorus came in, she was already thinking about how she would do it.  “This is going on the list,” she said, and sat back down.

 

“Really?” he said glancing at her. “I mean… Really?” Maybe Vega.Strife00 aka Orihime Inoue wasn’t such a goody-goody herself. “Uh, okay.”

 

“What?  It’s a good song. I wouldn’t do it like they do.  I couldn’t. Just like I couldn’t do _Closer_ like Trent Reznor.  I’d have to do it like me.”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. “It’s fine. Each song you have to make it your own,” he said. “I do that with my covers.”

 

“Same,” she said, smiling sweetly at him.  “Although, if there’s something that would make you uncomfortable hearing me sing, let me know and I’ll ax it.  Boyfriend benefits.”

 

He rolled his eyes and smiled. “Boyfriend benefits? What else do those benefits include?”

 

Her smile widened.  “Besides song vetos? First dibs on dancing. Make-out privileges.  Loyalty. Devotion, you know, the standard fare.”

 

He lifted his head up and looked at her. “C’mere, sit on my lap,” he said.

 

She dropped her head to her chest and bounced it back up, letting her chin lead the way over to him.  “Don’t mind if I do,” she chimed, then sat on his left knee.

 

“We need to take a picture,” Ulquiorra commented, picking up his phone. “We could to a half and half picture; like half your face and half my face.”

 

“I like it.  Do you know how to do that kind of thing?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. “It’s an app. Either send me a picture or we can take one.”

 

“Let’s take one so the lighting is the same? Or does my face look messed up?  I mean I’ve had this makeup on all day.”

 

He looked at her. She was gorgeous. Ulquiorra leaned toward her and kissed her. “You look fine.”

 

“You are a troublemaker,” she said in a low growl.  “Take the picture.” The ‘or else take off your pants’ was implied.

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “I’m not a troublemaker. Goody-two-shoes, remember? And hold your horses, I’ll take the picture in a moment. I have an idea for our bio.”

 

“Ooh, what is it?”

 

“A chance meeting on the internet brought Vega and IV together to form their duo,” he replied. 

 

“So, we take the extreme, outrageous path of truth?” she asked, combing her fingers through the hair at the back of his neck.

 

“I don’t see how it’s the extreme, outrageous truth. It’s what happened, is it not? You commented; we became friends; we soon could fuck. We’re certainly going to sing together.”

 

Her eyelids lowered a bit. “That’s the truth.  That’s what happened. It’s what’s going to happen.  I only meant… I don’t even care what I meant,” she said, kissing him.  She pulled back after a moment and kept her eyes closed, licking her upper lip.  “Let’s send that to Chad now and be done with it.”

 

“We still have a photo to take but this is good,” he said. Ulquiorra snapped several pictures with his phone of them kissing each other, with Orihime’s hands shielding most of his face. Her hair hung in the way of hers. He wasn’t going to let the coffeeshop dickhead try and take away his opportunity to spend more time with Orihime.

 

When he pulled back, he was panting. “Anything else we need to send to him?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

“Nope.”  Orihime was breathless.  “Which is the best one?”

 

He put his phone down and pulled up the cloud service, logging in. He clicked on the photos and brought them up on the laptop screen. “What do you think?”

 

“This one,” she said, pointing to one where her fingers were slightly curled and the side of his eyebrow was visible, and his hand was on her neck.  “Definitely this one.”

 

“Nice choice,” he said. She was right. The composition of the photo was good. It looked natural. They complimented each other. Once the photo was attached to an email along with their bio blurb, Ulquiorra sent off the information off to Sado just thirty minutes before the clock struck midnight. “It’s done. We still have more work to do though.”

 

“I’m starting to see why they say never mix business and pleasure.  This is torture,” she muttered.

 

Ulquiorra laughed. “I told you,” he said. “Up, let’s move to the bed and finalize this list. Then we can sleep.”

 

She nodded and got up, flopping down on his bed and picking up the pad and paper.  They went through the list again and started making additions.

 

There were some arguments over the songs but nothing that couldn’t be handled. Ulquiorra was getting excited. “So you want to practice tomorrow? At least do a run through?”

 

“Yeah, hold on. I’ll see if we can get a practice room.  I’ll book it for as long as we can get it, we can use it for as long as we need to that way.”  She whipped out her phone and laid down so that her head was on his thigh. “Okay, we can get a medium-size one for almost four hours if we go in the morning.  Ten to two.”

 

Four hours to practice? “We can always use my room if we need to practice more,” Ulquiorra said. He yawned then stretched his arms out. “But for now, you want to sleep here or do you need an escort back to your dorm?”

 

“We don’t have to use the practice room if you don’t want.  I’ll book it anyway just so we have the option and then I intend to not move from this bed for the next several hours.”


	12. You're My Star

There was a body snuggled against him. It was warm too. Ulquiorra cuddled closer but peeked an eye open to see dark red hair. Good. It wasn’t a dream. Orihime was actually laying beside him. He let his hands travel down her stomach and down her thigh before he cupped one of her breasts. The rollercoaster of the previous day had made him so tired that he had no energy once the adrenaline wore off. All he remembered is kissing Orihime and then closing his eyes for a minute.

 

A minute lasted seven hours.

 

Usually Ulquiorra was a light sleeper. He wore an eye mask sometimes to sleep. His dad had sent a bottle of melatonin with him, just in case.  Last night he slept like a log and from the state of his bed, he hadn’t moved much.

 

Orihime had woken up once in the middle of the night to roll over, but her long dress had tangled up in the covers and she had to sit up to straighten everything out. The lights had been left on so she turned them off and she had slipped back into his bed like it was her own, worming into the spot between his arms with her back to him.  

 

When he woke up, she was still out.  Dead to the world out. Orihime generally took a long time to fall asleep but when she did it took a five-alarm fire to rouse her.  Her sleep was filled with vivid dreams and nonsensical stories which she usually forgot moments after waking. This morning, however, she dreamed of a young man with black hair and green eyes serenading a group of adoring onlookers.  In this dream, Orihime was a brown snake, winding around his legs and hissing at a music stand. It didn’t make a lot of sense. Then the dream pivoted and she wasn’t a snake, but herself, and Ulquiorra wasn’t playing music, but holding a clipboard and whistle, having her go through an obstacle course full of swampy pits and pink alligators with glowing red eyes and gleaming white teeth.  

 

Her face twitched as the dream continued.  Her fists tightened and relaxed. Her leg jerked.  That woke her up. A sharp nasal inhalation later and she opened her eyes.  There was a weight on her body.  

 

“Ulquiorra?”

 

“Hmmm?” he hummed in a sleepy voice. “What?”

 

“Just making sure it was you and not your weird roommate.  Good morning,” she mumbled.

 

“Szay doesn’t like boobs,” he mumbled. “Morning but shh. Sleepy.”

 

“Everyone likes boobs,” she breathed, closing her eyes again.  She rolled over and buried her face into his chest. It was dark there and smelled good. “Ahh, this is the good stuff,” she said into his shirt.

 

He chuckled and opened his eyes. “You’re funny,” he said, letting go of her to stretch his arms above his head.

 

“Why?”

 

“Because, I need to take a shower. How I smell is not good,” Ulquiorra replied.

 

“What are you talking about?  I would bottle this and hoard it like a dragon,” she said, lips moving on his body, then took a deep breath for emphasis.  “You smell awesome.”

 

He scoffed at this. “I do not.” 

 

“Agree to disagree?” she said, slithering her body further up his. “You smell like nice boy and cologne.  It’s good. But…” she reached her destination, the spot right behind his jaw and under his ear, “this is the best spot.  Here you smell like nice boy and cologne and pheromones and hnngh,” she said, sniffing the spot and then kissing it. When she finished she made no move to retreat.

 

“Orihime.” Ulquiorra’s voice was strained and he felt his cock stirring in his sweats. She knew how to turn him on. “You didn’t need to do that.”

 

“Somebody needs…” she trailed off, her eyelashes fluttering open and shut, tickling the skin on his neck.  “Mmm,” she said, breathing his scent again. “...to shut up,” she growled lazily. Her untrapped arm came up from under the covers and fter her fingers found his other jaw,  she guided his mouth to hers for a soft, lingering kiss.  “That’s better,” she murmured after pulling away.

 

He raised an eyebrow at her before Ulquiorra decided that he, too, could play this game. He pushed Orihime onto her back before making himself at home between her legs. Burying his head into the crook of her neck, his mouth closed over the skin, sucking lightly before he moved his head, leaving a trail of suckling kisses along her neck. She smelled good too; like flowers and other sweet things. “Mmmm,” he hummed.

 

“See?  Sometimes not exactly clean is better than clean,” she smiled and raised her knees, letting the fabric of her skirt fall to the tops of her thighs.  She stretched her knees up to her chest, as she clutched at the air to either side of her, her spine cracking softly even with Ulquiorra on top of her.  In doing this, she had completely opened the vulnerable parts of her body up to him, but she wasn’t bothered. She rather liked it. When she was done stretching her hands found his hair and her feet came down to rest flat on either side of his thighs.

 

A hiss left him as soon as their lower bodies made contact. He wanted to groan but instead he propped himself up, giving the small woman a look. “Is there something I can help you with?” he asked. He could feel the heat coming from between her legs; she was so, so warm.

 

“Oh, I can think of lots of ways you can help me. I’m just waking up though. This is a very, very pleasant way to do it.  Can _I_ help you with anything?”

 

Ulquiorra bit his lip then gave a small nod. He exhaled a deep breath before kissing Orihime. It was kind of nice to not stick to his routines. “Depends,” he said moving his hips against her. 

 

“On what?” she asked, letting her nails gently drag along his scalp before kissing him back, barely humming into his mouth.

 

“How far you want this to go?” Ulquiorra offered this statement as a question but he was merely thinking out loud. How far was he willing to go? He already knew that he wanted Orihime. What was holding him back? He wanted to do this.

 

“Hmmm,  that’s a loaded question.” She kissed his chin and then pulled her head back.  The sleepy feeling was falling away and she had had a moment of clarity. “Look at me,” she said, and waited for his eyes to find hers.  She was trying to gauge him. He was talking like he wanted her. He was even acting like it, but there was something she couldn’t put her finger on that was not exactly right about it.  “We have a lot to do today, so…”

 

“So…?” He asked. “Are you saying we should work first and then indulge on each other?”

 

“Something like that,” she said, smiling and pulling his head back down to kiss him again.  “But a little indulgence right now won’t hurt. All things in moderation, right?” she said between kisses.

 

Ulquiorra nodded. He could agree to that. “Once again though, we’re wearing too much clothing.” He sat back on his heels and pulled the shirt off and tossed it behind him. Green eyes stared at Orihime as he hooked his fingers into the waist of his sweats and boxers, tugging them down.

 

Her eyes widened at his bold move, and drifted from his newly exposed cock to his face and back.  “Good morning…” she said, somewhat awestruck, her face heating up. She wasn’t sure what he was expecting her to do, so, tentatively, she pulled her dress up over her hips and belly, eyes on his face the entire time, watching for any signal that this was not what he had in mind.   When she found none, she pulled the dress over her head and left it in a heap above her head. She had taken her bra off when she had woken up in the middle of the night, so when she brought her arms back down, she was lying there in only her underwear.

 

Oh, she was embarrassed. Maybe he had gone too far. Ulquiorra used the blanket to cover his lap, while he mumbled, “Sorry.” God he was a fucking idiot. He only had taken off all of his clothes because he didn’t want to deal with the mess that had happened the last time. “I’m sorry.”

 

But on the other hand, she had taken off her clothes, so Ulquiorra was confused. “Why is this so fucking difficult for me?” He muttered to himself.

 

“Because you’re used to hating it?” she asked.  “We don’t _have_ to do this, you know.  But, just so you know, uh,  _nice,_ ” she said, glancing toward his lap and blushing hard, but returning her eyes to smile at him.  “Don’t apologize for that. I’m only sorry you put it away.” She bit her lip, embarrassed by her own words.  She meant them though.

 

“I think you might be right,” he said with a sigh. “I mean I want to it’s just, I don’t—I don’t know what to do.”

 

She pressed her lips together, though the smile remained on her cheeks and in her eyes as she nodded in understanding.  “Go take a shower. Get dressed. I’ll go back home and do the same and then we can meet up later and get to work,” she said as she grabbed her dress and covered herself up with it.

 

“Wait a minute,” he said, flustered. “Can’t we…”

 

“What do you want to do?” she was not quite on his level of flustered but at a loss.

 

A sigh. Clearly he blew it again. “I’m not sure,” Ulquiorra said. “Just forget it. I’m a loser.”

 

Oh no.  This would not stand. Ulquiorra Cifer was anything but a loser, and she intended to prove it to him.  Orihime scooted up to a seated position and climbed into his lap, letting the dress fall to the floor.  “You think Vega lets losers see her almost naked? Who do you take me for?” she asked in a brave attempt at a seductive voice, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him again.

 

Oh, this felt nice, he thought letting his arms wrap around her body. Ulquiorra parted his mouth, licking at Orihime’s. He wanted to feel every inch of her body. When their tongues touched, he moaned. Doing this type of stuff with Orihime felt awesome. It wasn’t bad. It wasn’t a chore. He wanted it. It was clear that they wanted each other. “Orihime,” he murmured, pulling back. Ulquiorra had to know. “What do you feel for me?”

 

She was stunned by the sudden stop in activity and it took her a half a minute for his words to register in her brain.  When they did, her breathing became shallow. She knew how she felt about him. Would he be ready to accept it? That was the part that was in question.

 

“I feel a lot,” she began. “A lot that I’m not sure I know how to put into words.  I’ve felt these feelings for you since before we met, and now that we have, it’s only seemed to solidify and grow more… more… all-encompassing,” she paused, feeling out of breath now, as her nerves started to make her doubt how he would take her confession.  “What about you?”

 

“I might be...” Ulquiorra paused for a moment. “Falling for you.” That sounded so lame when he said it out loud.

 

“That’s the Weezer song I wanted to suggest, but I was afraid you’d veto it--”  She stopped herself. What a fucking coward. What if he misinterpreted what she was saying, talking in tryhard references?  She looked him in the eyes and the truth came spilling from her lips. “I am too. I thought I was in love once before, but I was wrong.  This is different. This is scarier. This feels like it’s still happening. It feels like the fall is never going to stop.”

 

Shit.  Apparently it was one extreme or another for her.  Her eyes widened in fear as she realized she had kind of laid herself bare.  He was either going to run, throw her out, or miraculously accept it.

 

He wouldn’t call it love yet but it was getting there. Just as long as they were both on the same page with things, Ulquiorra could deal with this. He tipped his head to kiss her mouth then her chin and made his way to her neck. Then he carefully tipped Orihime back so that she was laying on the bed again. His teeth raked over his lip as he moved the blanket out of the way. 

 

His fingers drifted over her body, paying special attention to her tits and the nipples that peaked there. He then gently scraped his short fingernails against her stomach. “Agree,” he said. 

 

Damn.  He was making her body respond in ways she hadn’t felt in a long time.  Wait, no. She was responding in a new way. It wasn’t just her body preparing itself to be touched, mind happily agreeing and anticipating the pleasure that resulted.  No, this time her mind was being seduced. Her heart was leading the charge here instead of the other way around. It felt entirely more intimate. The morning light that filtered through the window may as well have been moonlight.  The only thing her brain was registering was him; his face, his smell, his touch. “Ulquiorra, I…” she didn’t tell him what she wanted. She just did it, her legs sliding against his, trying to make as much contact as possible.

 

“Hmmm?” he said, glancing up at her. Right now he was focused on one thing. As soon as his fingertips touched the lacy, frilly, silky pair of underwear Orihime wore, he smoothed his palm over the surface. “You what?” He was trying not to get distracted by the way her body was moving.

 

“I want you to touch me,” she said, her voice quiet and feminine, her eyes dark and heavy.

 

“Can I… May I take these off of you?”

 

“Yes,” she said, nodding.  Affection spread throughout her chest as she raised her hips off of the bed.

 

He didn’t know what he expected once he shimmied the piece of clothing down her legs. Ulquiorra’s brain was trying to scream at him this was too soon. It was too much. His hormones were telling him this was exactly what he wanted. He wanted to feel her smooth legs against his body. He wanted to feel the softness of her chest against his. When the underwear were off Orihime’s body, he reached behind him and placed them on the bed. Then his mouth dropped open. He tried to speak but nothing came out. There was really nothing he could say. “Holy shit, Veggs. You’re… you’re beautiful.”

 

The look of impending dejection on her face cleared up in an instant as he finished his observation, and a bashful grin colored her face pink.  “You too,” she replied. She wasn’t sure how much he wanted to do, or what he would want to see. Maybe he would just want to lie beside her and explore.  Maybe he wanted to dive right into it. She would be okay either way, but she wasn’t going to take the first step, despite the instinct to spread her legs.  She didn’t want to remind him of Nel.

 

He sucked in a breath before he nudged her legs apart.  She yielded perfectly, allowing him to guide her legs in whichever direction he pleased with no more resistance than water. Ulquiorra had to swallow as the heat of her body touched him. “Is this okay?” he asked, propping himself up with the palm of a hand.

 

“Yes,” came the inhaled whisper. She put her hand on his forearm and slowly stroked her way up to the back of his upper arm with a featherlight touch.

 

The green-eyed male knew how to pleasure a woman. He had read books and websites. Nel had taught him things. He had to throw all that knowledge out the window as he started caressing Orihime again, this time with a slightly more aggressive touch.

 

A sharp exhale left her throat as her pelvis rose in response to him.  She bit her lip and sighed. This was happening. He was touching her. She closed her eyes for a moment and got lost in that connection, a small smile playing on her parted lips.  

 

The way his fingers made her gasp pleased Ulquiorra. He liked the little sounds she made. He leaned over her and took one of her nipples into his mouth, tongue swirling around the sensitive skin while using the hand that wasn’t propping him up to feel that bare skin between her legs. As soon as his fingers felt between those folds, he had to steady himself.

 

Orihime was turned on apparently. Very turned on.

 

When his fingers dipped into her wetness she had to bite back a moan.  She could feel her core throbbing, aching for him to inch closer. The feel of his mouth on her tit didn’t help calm her down.  One of her hands found its way to his chest and her thumb brushed a slow arc over the muscle there, dragging across his nipple in return, then raked down his back, her soft fingertips leaving him unmarked apart from the slight goosebumps.

 

“Hnnngh,” he whined. How was she so good at driving him crazy? Why was she so good at driving him crazy? All she was doing was touching him! Ulquiorra moved his mouth to her neglected breast before his fingers sank deep inside of her. “Fuck,” he muttered, his head coming up for just a fraction of a second.

 

A squeak, followed by a soft whining ‘oh’ accompanied his intrusion. Usually at this point Orihime was on cloud nine, laying back and just waiting for the magic to happen.  This was different. She was desperate for him. All she wanted was to feel him as close to her as possible. She pulled his body upward with her hands, kissing his temple when she was able to reach it, and kissing a trail down from there to his mouth as one leg pushed from the back of his knee up to his ass, only stopping when she was able to put her tongue against his and pant into his mouth, whimpering as his fingers moved within her.

 

Soon after his mouth met hers, Ulquiorra had to withdraw his hand to keep from completely crushing Orihime with the weight of his body. He was certain that would be an unromantic and unsexy thing to do. “Sorry,” he mumbled, as he rolled his hips against her. He was trying to keep up that connection between their bodies.

 

That was when she felt him against her for the first time; really against her.  The head of his cock parted the folds of her netherlips like a hot knife through butter, and the ridge on the underside of his shaft dragged along her slit from tip to balls in a hard, hot rasp.  “Oh my god, Ulquiorra,” she mewled, shifting her hips to prolong the contact. She bit her lip and had to consciously stop herself from trying to catch his length with her wanting core. She broke their kiss and panted into his ear, mouthing the shell and lobe with her teeth and lips.   “You feel so good,” she told him, her voice a tiny, breathy cry. It was the truth, but it wasn’t as true as what she managed not to say, which was that she wanted him inside of her.

 

His brain seemed to melt. Every bit of sense and logic left him. Feeling Orihime beneath him made him shiver, the action making his body tremble. He was surprised he wasn’t trying to hold back an orgasm just from that touch. He took several deep breaths and stilled his body. Could he? They had no protection. Hadn’t Orihime mentioned she was on birth control and had been tested? Still it would be irresponsible.

 

Although he had never had sex, he still got tested while he’d been intimate with Nel. It just made sense. He gave his head a little shake. That was one _thing_ he didn’t want to think about right now. “You feel good too, Veggs,” Ulquiorra said, sliding his body back some before reaching between them. He was going to do this. The next thrust of his hips was slow as he bit his lip, concentrating on what he was doing. Instead of the head of his cock missing her entrance, Ulquiorra let her heat engulf him. As soon as he stopped moving, his mouth opened slightly as he tried to breathe with his eyes closed. 

 

Holy shit.  Holy shit. Holy shit shit shit shit shit.  Orihime’s eyes snapped open and she inhaled sharply as he felt him press into her.  Her mind was being blown and she was unable to process anything besides her great and utter surprise.  He had done it. He wasn’t a virgin anymore. As this fact settled upon her, her legs came up to gently wrap around his hips and her hands came up to the sides of his face and she kissed his mouth tenderly, pecking at it and pressing the their breathless lips together. She brought her hands to the back of his shoulders and pressed down, urging him to let his body fall on hers.  After his weight settled on her, she held him, a warm hand soothing his back as she whispered in his ear. “Ulquiorra… I… I’m…” She didn’t actually have words, so she kissed him again and started to move her hips slowly.

 

Fuck. That word rolled around in his head as he tried to get a grasp on what happened. He felt Orihime kissing him. He followed her cues, moving his body so that he lay against her. He heard his name from her mouth. Why hadn’t he done this sooner? Why hadn’t he given in to her the other week? He could have been doing this almost every day. He swallowed, hooking his hands under Orihime’s shoulders as she began to move. “Oh god,” he breathed. Ulquiorra was drowning in the sensation of how her body felt against his cock. “Orihime… Orihime.”

 

It had been a long time since she felt anything like this, but even then, she was sure it had never felt like this before.  He felt so good, filling and stretching her until there was delicious tension rippling inside of her with each shift of their bodies  “Ulquiorra,” she answered, “Fuck... You… You… hnngh. Push into me harder.” 

 

The honesty was partial.  Her brain was throwing words and ideas around that luckily met with her minimal filter and bounced back.  Words that sounded like commands to fuck her senseless. Words that would have shifted the atmosphere to one perhaps more reverent and holy than this needed to be.  Words like _make love to me_.

 

His eyes went wide listening to her words. He could barely handle what they were doing now without losing his mind and she wanted it harder? She wanted more? He was already close to that edge of bliss. It wouldn’t take much to send him over the edge. He pushed himself up and Ulquiorra looked down at Orihime as he began to move his hips. About three snaps of his hips he had to stop. Shaking his head, “I’m going to come. I can’t...”

 

She smiled at him.  This was his first time, did he think she expected a miracle?  “Come, then. I want you to.”

 

“Are you sure? I mean...” He faded out giving another thrust. His voice just seemed to leave him as he slid deep into her body again. “Hnnngh. I don’t want to. This feels too good to be over this quick.”

 

“It’s up to you,” she panted. “We can do it again later, you know,” she added, her breath passing fast through a warm, loving grin. They were doing this.  They were having sex. They had broken that line that divided them, and honestly, she couldn’t be happier.  

 

Ulquiorra groaned at her words. If he had his way they would be doing it all the time after this. If he didn’t think about how her body felt, he could hold off right? He stared at her face as he started to move again. His gaze met hers and Ulquiorra knew he couldn’t hold off. She had snapped the band that held his self control so that it was completely gone. He didn’t want it anyway. Burying his face into her neck, his hips moved faster against Orihime as he grinded his way to coming.

 

Jesus Christ, was all Orihime thought as he pushed up into her again and again.  This was good. This was better than good, it was amazing. If he could keep this up for a good three minutes she was sure that would be all it would take for her to join him, but she felt him tense and lose control of his pacing. This was it. She lifted her ass off the mattress slightly and tensed in anticipation.

 

His breath hissed out of him as he felt pulses going through his body and cock. The twitches slowed but he felt his heart beating rapidly. Ulquiorra let his eyes close as he lay on top of Orihime.

 

Her hand came to rest on his hair as she panted as well, fingers lazily combing through the inky black locks.  She opened her mouth to ask how he was feeling, and closed it just in time to stop herself from saying, “I love you.”  She smiled. It was the truth. She breathed a few more times and placed several kisses on his hairline before trying again.  “How do you feel?”

 

“Uh, I’m--Fuck. Did we really just do that?” he asked, mouth against her neck. “How do you feel?”

 

She hummed a little chuckle.  “You mean did we just have sex?  Yes, we did. I’m as surprised as you are.  I feel happy. I feel warm. I feel like I should have prepared a card or flowers.  Um, thank you.”

 

Ulquiorra chuckled. He shifted his body, feeling stickiness on his legs. He had to stamp down the feeling of jumping up and cleaning himself off. “I didn’t plan for this to happen. I just wanted it. I’m sorry that you didn’t get off,” he said.

 

“My darling dear Ulquiorra, you were spectacular and to be honest I’m impressed you lasted that long.  That _was_ your first time, right?”

 

“Yeah, I’ve never been inside of another person. It was pretty damn amazing,” Ulquiorra said, pushing himself up and looking down at her.

 

“Well, thanks for sharing it with me.  And as far as getting off goes, I take rain checks,” she said and grinned, her eyes squinting into little crescents.

 

He took a deep, shaky breath. “Is it weird that I think I was waiting for you? I mean that’s why I wasn’t interested in anyone else, except you.”

 

Her grin relaxed, and her right hand rose to rest on his heart.  “I don’t think it’s weird. It just sounds like you know what’s in here better than most people do.”

 

Ulquiorra gave her a smile before he sat back, groaning at the sensation of pulling out of her body. He was glad they were in his room for this. It would have been awkward in her room. “You did say you were on birth control, right? I wasn’t dreaming that, was I? Do you need anything to clean up?”

 

“Yes and yes, thanks,” she said with an awkward giggle.  “I have a birth control implant,” she said, patting her arm where the small, matchstick-sized rod resided.  “So you don’t have to worry, and I told you I’m clean. That test is recent, too. Do I need to ask what I should have asked before?”  she threw an apologetic cringe face in his direction as she brought it up.

 

He stood up and went over to his desk. He kept paper towels and baby wipes in the bottom drawer. Ulquiorra looked up at her with a frown. “No, I was just making sure. I’ve been tested only because of the thing with Nel. Clean. I know it seems insensitive but, I’m going to ask and recheck things because that’s my nature.”

 

She looked at him with a confused expression.  “I don’t think it’s insensitive. It’s practical.”  She watched as he took out his cleaning supplies. “Also, before you start feeling guilty about something else that’s silly, don’t worry about wanting to be clean.  It’s not crazy. Some people don’t like feeling sticky. I don’t judge. Just make sure you come back after we’re cleaned up and snuggle a bit.”

 

“I think that’s another Nel thing? The being clean. Sorry.” He turned his back to her and quickly wiped himself off before he brought the baby wipes to the bed. “These OCDs are annoying to me, so I can just imagine if they make you crazy.”

 

“Believe it or not, I don’t enjoy being cold and wet, so this is very much appreciated.  So far your mannerisms have not struck me as all that out of the ordinary. I don’t know, maybe I’m just used to neat freaks,” she said with her back to him as she cleaned herself.  “Do you have a bag for these?”

 

“One better,” he responded, producing the small wastebasket that sat under his desk. He held it out to her. “Um, you mentioned about doing that again…” Ulquiorra could feel his face get warm as he spoke.

 

“Yeah, I did.  You ready to go again already?”  she teased.

 

He rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Not quite. Could you stay here tonight, again?”

 

Damn he was cute.  “I could, but what about your roommate?  Would he care?”

 

“Orihime, Szayel has never stayed overnight in here. He stays with his boy—friend in a frat house.” Ulquiorra gave a smile. “I could stay in your room,” he teased.

 

“Oh I’m sure Tats would _love_ that,” she replied, with a sarcastic lilt.  Her brows smoothed out after that as she realized something.   “Ulquiorra, we need to talk about something else. I know we discussed how we felt about each other, and we’re posting pics on Instagram and not being exactly shy acting like a couple, but we never…  We never really came to terms. We’re operating on assumptions right now.” She paused and chewed on her lip. She had never been with someone she cared about as much as she cared about him, so this kind of thing was new for her.  She was worried about protecting the relationship they were starting. “What do you want? I mean, what are your expectations and what are you willing--- This is coming out wrong. How do you see us?”

 

Yeah it did come out wrong. He bristled somewhat at her words. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Wasn’t this post-sex stuff supposed to be a happy time? His brows knitted together. He put down the wastebasket before he grabbed his phone. He would have to answer her question in a nonverbal way. Ulquiorra couldn’t put his thoughts into actual spoken words. 

 

_**ObscurasIV** _

_I expect us to be happy._

_I expect us to be just like we’ve always been._

_You’re my Vega. You’re my star._

_You’re my friend but now you’re also my lover._

_You want to see how I see us? I will show you._

 

Once the direct message was sent to Orihime’s Instagram account, Ulquiorra climbed back onto the bed with her. He made sure she was decent before he snapped a picture of them together in his bed. He was quiet as he looked at it. Their hair was a tangled mess. Orihime had love bites peppering her neck. Both of their mouths were red and swollen. Ulquiorra’s eyes had a wild glint to them.

 

She wasn’t sure what he was doing, and she hadn’t checked her phone which was in her purse on the floor.  Despite feeling like she was hanging on a knife’s edge waiting for his answer, the closeness of their current position compelled her to roll over into him and kiss the nearest patch of skin, which at the moment was the area of his chest right around his heart.  “What are you looking at?” she asked, after he hadn’t said anything.

 

He finally showed her the photo. “This,” he said. “I think I might post it.”

 

She rose her eyebrows.  “Oh? As-is?”

 

“Yes. Just like this, full face and all.” Ulquiorra shifted his eyes toward her then stared.

 

A flash of fear streaked through Orihime’s mind.  Fear that went by the name Claire Cartwright. Orihime did not want to think about her.  She didn’t want her life dictated to her by that old has-been who had been trying to mold her since she was little to bring her more glory.  No. Aunt Claire was not going to ruin this for her.

 

“Do it.”

 

He saw how her eyes widened and how just for a brief second, Orihime looked terrified. Was she scared of Nel? He frowned and then shook his head. He sent the photo to her by text then cropped it, just showing from their mouths and below. There was no way he was going to make the short woman scared. “Hashtag good morning. Hashtag oops. Hashtag lovers. Hashtag breakfast in bed,” he said.

 

She hugged him and kissed him again, this time on the mouth.  “I… Ulquiorra. Just so we’re clear neither of us are seeing other people.  Capice?”

 

“I am not seeing anyone else. I’ve not talked to Nel face to face since Monday. As far as I’m aware you’re my only internet and real life girlfriend.”

 

Orihime grinned and shook her head at him.  “A return ‘capice’ would have sufficed, but I’ll give you sassing rights as a V-club retirement party gift,” she teased, then kissed him again and laid back down.  “I hope you don’t break the internet.”

 

He laughed but the joy didn’t last on his face. “You need to read your DMs,” he said before kissing her slowly. His hand came up to cup her face. Was this love he felt? He wanted to keep kissing her but his phone started vibrating like crazy.

 

Damn, her boyfriend could kiss.  She felt momentarily drugged when he stopped, then had a moment of clarity and got out of bed and grabbed her purse of the floor before diving back into bed.  She wasn’t particularly shy about her body but she wasn’t an exhibitionist; walking around the room nude seemed a little awkward to her.

 

She took her phone out and opened Instagram.

 

Holy shit.

 

There were a lot of DMs to wade through.  A _lot_.  But she quickly found ObscurasIV’s.  She read it and by the time she was done, tears were streaking down her cheeks.  He was a goddamned poet, as far as she was concerned. She returned the favor in kind, but because she was not a poet, she used a quote.

 

_**Vega.Strife00** _

_I’m shakin’ at your touch_

_I like you way too much_

_My baby I’m afraid I’m fallin’ for you._

 

It was accurate, but they weren’t her own words.  She’d have to remedy that. She didn’t think too long or hard before the words came to her.

 

_I’ll be your star if you be my sky.  Xoxo_

 

***

 

Ulquiorra told Orihime that he would meet her in the practice room after he was done printing off sheet music and lyrics. He wanted her to stay with him but she had things to do before they went to the fine arts building or whatever it was called.

 

His phone rang.

 

“Hello,” he said, not bothering to look at the caller ID. 

 

“Wow, you answered,” Nel said. “I figured you’d be so enamored with Vega that you would have forgotten how to speak.”

 

“Nel, what do you want?” Ulquiorra asked as he loaded more paper into the printer. He was trying to do things and she was hindering him.

 

There was some sniffling on the other end. “Did you sleep with her?”

 

“None of your business.”

 

Ulquiorra knew what was coming next. She whined. “Ulqui,” came the nasal reply.

 

“It’s none of your business, Nel. Make your own assumptions,” he said. There was more sniffing. Ugh, she was crying. “Yes, I did. I found someone I wanted to give that to.”

 

That did it. Ulquiorra could hear the sobs being wrenched from Nel’s throat. He quietly hung up the phone and frowned. He decided to text Orihime.

 

  * Nel called. She asked and I answered. She started crying. I know I shouldn’t but I feel bad. Slightly… marginally… acutely. Normal? I think I just broke her heart or something. Idk. Be there in 15 to 20.



 

Orihime got his text as she was leaving her room after getting showered and changed.  She sighed as she read it.

 

  * Of course you feel bad; you have that magical human trait called empathy.  Don’t let her fool you though. Although it probably stings like a bitch and her pride is definitely hurt, she’s known this was coming for a long, long time.  I’m sorry you feel bad, though. <3



 

Orihime sent the message as she left her building to go down to lower campus. She had to pass Robinson on the way. She hoped she wouldn’t run into anyone she knew.

 

***

  


Ulquiorra did not expect the elevator to stop on the third floor. He did not expect to see Nel when the doors opened. He didn’t expect to see the shock and hurt register on her face. When she just stood there and stared at him, he mashed the close door button along with the lobby button. He would not share that confined space with her.

 

He reached the lobby without another incident and left the building. He took a moment to enjoy the mid September day as he began walking in the direction of the coffee shop.

 

Orihime had just opened up the practice room and was going through the notebook she had taken from Ulquiorra’s room a set it on a music stand for the time being.  She did a few vocal warm-ups, and while she was at it and Ulquiorra wasn’t there yet, she ran through _Dein Blaues Auge_.  After she was done and he still wasn’t there, she checked her phone.  No new texts from him. So she went to Instagram.

 

Holy shit.  Again.

 

She had hundreds of new followers.  Thousands of comments and DMs. Most of them bots or “Follow for Follow” messages.  There were a lot of emoji reactions to her date night post from the night before. But overwhelmingly, there were DMs and comments about the picture Ulquiorra had posted that morning.  Some were complimentary but a lot were scathing, calling her a bitch or a slut for taking an indecent picture like that. Then there were some from Gamuza333.

 

She wasn’t going to look.  She meant to not look. She set her phone down and waited for Ulquiorra.  He was running behind.

 

She looked.

 

_Gamuza333_

_How dare you!_

_You’ve corrupted him._

_I know who your aunt is._

_I imagine she would hate that you’re “dating” a lowly YouTube cover artist._

_Modern music and all that._

_He was mine and now you’ve probably gotten knocked up by him or gave him an sti!_

 

Orihime sighed.  It was sad. She went through the effort to make a new Instagram account just so she could throw petty accusations and threats at her?  Okay, Nel. Orihime almost felt bad for her callous reaction to the green-haired woman’s hysterical rambling. Almost was actually a stretch.  Orihime was still angry at the woman for her appalling treatment of Ulquiorra. She would not rise to the bait, but she did take a screenshot.

 

Ulquiorra was running late and that was because the coffee shop was busy and they ran out of muffins so he had to get a bagel. It was slathered with cream cheese though. He had gotten Orihime a hot lemon water while he got just a regular black coffee. He entered the building where the practice rooms were and the set down his stuff before texting the redhead.

 

  * yo I’m here.



 

The practice room she had booked was right near the entrance of the practice area.

 

  * Come on up.  We’re second door on the right.



 

He looked at the text and gathered his stuff. He walked up the stairs and counted the doors. Second one on the right. He kicked it with his foot.

 

“Oooh, contraband!” Orihime said, pulling him into the room and closing the door, taking the cups from him and hiding them where they wouldn’t be visible from the vertical pane of glass in the door.  “Technically we’re not allowed anything but water in here. But what people don’t know won’t hurt them,” she said, smiling and giving him a kiss. “Thanks for breakfast again.”

 

His face turned pink. “Uh, well technically I got you water: hot lemon water. Also I was going to get you a banana but I figured you had enough of that this morning.”

 

Orihime put her hands on her hips and shook her head.  “Ulquiorra, I’m disappointed. When it comes to bananas, I’ll take as much as you are willing to give me.”

 

“It’s not polite to fuck in public?” He said as he unwrapped the bagel and offered half to her.

 

“I guess.  I never really cared about that kind of thing, though.  Thank you,” she said, taking the offered bagel. “So, before you move past the topic too much, let’s get this out of the way,” she said, pulling out her phone and showing Ulquiorra the screenshot she had taken earlier.  “I still had her blocked so she made a new account. This one has three threes.”

 

He scowled at the screen, his eyes narrowing. He took Orihime’s phone and took a picture of himself just his chest and hand, flipping off the camera before he sent it to this new account. “Brush it off,” he said. “Take the advice you gave me.”

 

“Yeah.  I didn’t respond.   She can be as petty as she wants.  I doubt she knows my aunt but if she does, I doubt she would really do anything but be disappointed.  And it would have nothing to do with you performing modern music. It would have everything to do with me not mimicking her life choices.  Sorry Auntie - Hime is not going to be a spinster, no matter how hard you try to sell it.”

 

He raised an eyebrow as he browsed through the other messages she had received as he ate his half of the bagel. “Not a dick pic in sight. Mostly salty bitches.”

 

“Right?  Will wonders never cease,” she laughed.

 

“How is that pic indecent? We’re both covered up. I mean unless you count my man boobs,” he said. Ulquiorra shook his head and handed Orihime back her phone. “Stupid people. Always judging.”

 

“Man boobs?!” She cackled at the idea.  “Those are some itty bitty titties, in that case.  Anyway, shall we get to business?”

 

“Dunno, anything else you wish to discuss?”

 

“How was it, you know, with Nel?”

 

His forehead furrowed. Ulquiorra shook his head. He didn’t want to think about her right now. He didn’t want to soil the activities with Orihime by the subpar orgasms he had with Nel. “Meh,” he said.

 

Ulquiorra has completely misinterpreted the question.  Orihime has been asking about his confrontation with Nel, not the orgasms.  His noncommittal answer did not raise any flags, though, and she nodded. “How do you feel now that you’ve had some time to think on your own?”

 

“I, uh, it… I honestly don’t feel any different. I’m the same guy,” Ulquiorra said with a shrug. “It was awesome. I want to do it again and again but we have stuff to work on.” He hoped that was the right thing to say.

 

“Well, maybe we can use it as motivation, like, get X done, do Y?”  she offered.

 

“How do you feel?”

 

She blushed, grinning down at her feet.  “Um, really… uh really happy? Is that dorky to say?  I dunno. It’s the truth.”

 

One side of his mouth rose. “It’s not dorky to say. It’s cute,” Ulquiorra replied. “So now that that is all out of the way, are you ready to work?”

 

Her head came back up.  “Yes. No, wait,” she said, wrapping her arms around his waist and kissing him once more.  “Okay, now. Do you need to warm up or anything?”

 

“Nah, I was doing that after you left while I was printing off stuff,” he said. Ulquiorra eased his bag off his shoulders and then bent down to extract the folder that contained the sheet music and lyrics. He handed it to Orihime.

 

“Thank you.  So, where to start?  We can do the Foo Fighters one again.  Decide on an arrangement?”

 

“It’s up to you, this is your gig. I’m just along for the ride.”

 

“What do you mean it’s my gig?  _We’re_ Vega IV, remember?”

 

“You’re the face and the voice; I’m just the guy with the guitar,” he said. Ulquiorra paused for a moment. “Shit. I forgot my guitar in my room. Oh well. We can use the piano.”

 

“How distracted were you?”

 

“Eh, I just wanted to get here and see you? I also wanted coffee. And my brain left me early this morning so on a scale from one to ten with one being focused and ten being so scatterbrained, I’m at a high eight,” Ulquiorra answered.

 

She chuckled.  “Okay, let’s start with My Name is Jonas.”


	13. Vega IV

 

“Ok, next up is a duo new to Sado’s, Vega IV.”

 

The announcement was underwhelming, but there was a glint of excitement in Chad’s eyes.

 

Orihime looked at Ulquiorra and nodded.  He started to play.

 

***

 

The three and a half days leading up to the Vega IV show were, to say the least, stressful.  Between schoolwork and rehearsals and internet bullshit, not to mention Ulquiorra’s newfound appetite for sex, Orihime was literally and figuratively stretched to her limits.

 

The rehearsals and the sex were fine, to be honest.  It was dealing with her classes and other people that was really a drag.  Gamuza333 waited a day and a half before sending pictures of her and Ulquiorra naked in bed together from before they got together.  That was nauseating. Orihime didn’t even reply.

 

Then, when she had voice studio on Tuesday, Aizen was in rare form.

 

“Orihime, are you ill?”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Your voice.  The clarity is lacking.  Have you been screaming? Eating dairy?”

 

“No, nothing like that.”

 

“Well, whatever you’re doing, stop.  You have to focus on your concert class.”

 

She nodded, having no intention to follow his advice.

 

The next day with him was more of the same, plus alpha.

 

“You’re right, Dr. Aizen, I think I am getting a cold.”

 

“I see, and here I thought your lips were more swollen than usual because you were happy to see me.  Poor dear. Hot water and rest. Try not to sing too much until you’re well. _Doctor’s_ orders,” he said, standing and putting his hands on her shoulders.  “You are very tense, Orihime. You need to relax.”

 

She thanked him and made some excuse to leave early.  She felt disgusted. She also felt a little guilty, like somehow she was responsible for his inappropriate interest in her.  Maybe he was able to detect that she was sexually active again? Maybe she had been smiling too much? She sighed, shaking her head and making her way to a practice room.   Today was the last day to put together the Vega IV show. Thursday Ulquiorra had class until two, and after that it would just be rehearsing. There was no time to be worrying about anything else.

 

***

 

He couldn’t wait for this stupid class to be over. Electronic Music for whatever dipshit decided to take it was boring. He had thought it would be more interesting than it was. Spoiler, it wasn’t. The teacher droned on and on about how electronic music paved the way and blah blah blah. Ulquiorra tuned him out. Let the guy with dreadlocks and cargo shorts talk about stuff that he didn’t care about.

 

As soon as class was over, Ulquiorra grabbed his stuff, including his guitar case, and almost ran to the practice room Orihime booked for them. He decided to text her.

 

  * Class is over. I’m headed to the room now.



 

As Ulquiorra opened the door to the practice area, he heard familiar voices.

 

“Are you serious?” this voice was somewhat angry.

 

“Yes, I’m serious.  We can do it tomorrow.  I don’t have time for this right now!”

 

“Just so you know, I don’t play with subpar performers.  If you’re not going to take this seriously then I’m out.”

 

“Dude, no.  I promise. Things will be back to normal after tonight.”

 

“Dude?  I’m not your _dude_ , Orihime.  Chicks don’t get to call me dude.”

 

“Whatever, I don’t have time for this right now.  Seriously. I need to rehearse.”

 

“What’s this for, anyway?  Those guys aren’t here. I’m not here.  This isn’t for your concert class or the lounge shows.  Also I never got your answer about the wedding.”

 

“Yeah, I’ll do it, okay?”  Orihime’s voice sounded frustrated and pleading at the same time.

 

“Oh, good. Awesome,” The orange-haired man seemed genuinely surprised that she agreed.  He had offered her a ridiculously low amount of money for the wedding gig. “You missed a good party on Saturday night, by the way.  That Michelle girl brought some chick with green hair and damn, those girls party.”

 

“Great.  Okay, well, anyway, I’ll talk to you later, Ichigo,” Orihime said, backing into the practice room and shutting the door.

 

Ulquiorra made himself scarce as the orange-haired guy walked away from the room. He didn’t want to be caught eavesdropping. As soon as he thought the other man was gone, the dark-haired male slipped inside of the practice room quietly as not to disturb Orihime. She sounded stressed. She looked stressed. Maybe he should have backed off a bit. He was taking up every bit of spare time that she had and even then it wasn’t enough. He didn’t let her get much sleep when she stayed over. “Hey,” he said putting down his bag and guitar case.

 

She exhaled in relief when she heard his voice, spinning around and nearly throwing herself at him.  She was in desperate need of a hug and some reassurance. She was about two steps away from a legitimate freak out.  “Oh thank god you’re here, I don’t think I could take another dumbass coming over to distract me.”

 

“Are you okay?” he asked, wrapping his arms around her. Ulquiorra was concerned. He was probably part of her stress. “What’s wrong?”

 

She shook her head.  “It’s been… It’s been troublesome in this building.  Doctor Professor Josh Groban’s creepy older brother has been scolding me and then yesterday…” she shook her head. “Anyway, then that Ichigo _dude_ ,” she emphasized out of spite, “came in here reading me the riot act.  I haven’t even gotten to Instagram. All that can be dealt with tomorrow.  I want to focus on tonight. I always get pre-show jitters but this feels like there is a lot more on the line; it’s more personal.” 

 

There was about ten things in her explanation that were separate things to deal with. “Who is Doctor Professor--Oh, you mean Creepy McFeely?” Ulquiorra frowned. Why the hell didn’t she just do what she wanted? It wasn’t like her aunt was footing the bill. “Veggs, if this doesn’t make you happy then why do you keep doing it? You hate all this classical mumbo jumbo. Change your major. Your aunt isn’t going to know if you do.”

 

“She will.  She’s friends with the department head. And I don’t _hate_ it, it’s just not what I love,” she said, her eyes finding his and holding on for a minute.  She was looking at what she loved right now. “Anyway, she holds the purse strings for the time being. I don’t get control of my trust funds until I’m twenty-two.  I mean, I could drop out of school and go back when I get my money but it seems like a waste of time.”

 

“Your aunt can go fuck herself. She’s holding you back,” Ulquiorra said. “Fuck Instagram and all of the other social media.”

 

Her eyebrows raised at his language, but she was grateful for his sentiment.  She squeezed her arms around him a little tighter and nodded into his chest. “Thanks,” she murmured, then relaxed her hold.  “Are you ready for tonight? I know you keep pushing that this is my gig but it’s your first time performing live. You nervous?”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “I don’t get nervous. I’m not nervous. Right now I’m irritated that people are causing you stress. I’ve probably caused some of it too.”

 

She pulled her head back and looked him in the eye.  “What are you talking about? You are my favorite time of day,” she said, smiling and bringing a finger to bop the side of his nose.

 

He let her go and sighed. “I don’t let you sleep. I’m constantly up your ass. I keep taking your attention away from your classes. You can’t tell me that that doesn’t get annoying,” Ulquiorra said. 

 

“I can and I will.  I know I’m kind of distracted this week, but I hope you’re not disappointed when you find out what kind of nympho I am.  I will be the one annoying you, I’m sure.” She only half meant what she said. He had proven himself very interested; she was sure they wouldn’t have a problem with sex drive compatibility.  “Anyway, after tonight’s show things will settle down a bit. We can finish our English paper and go on another date. Tomorrow we’re still on for Prisoner of Azkaban, right?”

 

A sigh left him but Ulquiorra nodded. “We might want to let Sado know that we’re going to be doing this as an occasional thing. There’s no way we’re going to be able to keep up with a gig every week,” he stated.

 

“Yeah.  I mean, you haven’t recorded all week, have you?  Maybe sometime after we’ve had more time to clean up this set we can just knock out performances now and then like it’s no big deal but right now… this is a little crazy.  Also I have to let my voice rest for this concert class next month. I know… it seems contradictory, but I really want it to go well… kind of like my last hurrah as a classical music student?”

 

“Okay. I just don’t want you pushing yourself and getting burnt out. What if this gig is like your foot into something big?” he asked. “C’mon we have one last rehearsal to get through and then we have to get ready.”

 

She nodded and they started to play.

 

***

 

Orihime had gone back to her room to get ready.  All of her stuff was there. She was going to pick up Ulquiorra in her car, but was running behind.  She could not decide what to wear, and for some reason it was much more important to her than usual.

 

  * _We still have like an hour before we absolutely have to be there.   Do you think you could come over and help me?_



 

He got her message as he was toying with ideas on what to wear. He already had decided on some makeup to wear. It was what he had planned to wear if he ever showed his face as Obscuras IV; heavily lined eyes with teal streaks going down his face. Stupid but he liked the look of it. It suited him just fine. 

 

  * _I can come over but I’m stuck on what to wear. All black? All white? Pink? Some tips here Vega._



 

She laughed.  She opened her app to start a video conference.  She didn’t even think twice about the fact that she was nearly naked.

 

At first he thought it was his mother wanting to speak to him but then Ulquiorra looked at who it was. Whew. It was only Orihime. He answered it holding the phone up. “Holy shit, you know how to greet a guy.”

 

“Oh, it’s nothing you haven’t seen before,” she said with a mild blush.  “Okay, show me your options.”

 

He flipped the camera around to show Orihime the outfits he had laid out on his bed. He stared at her body though, not really paying attention. “Damn do we have to go to this? I mean can’t we just stay in your room, fucking until Tats comes back?”

 

She smirked.  “Well if you hurry we can get a quickie in before I get dressed… I mean, it would help me take the edge off.  Let’s see…” she said, checking out his clothing selections.

 

“So pick an outfit. I’ll get dressed and jog over there.” Ulquiorra huffed. Why was she stuck in that stupid dorm? Why couldn’t her dumb ass aunt just accept Orihime was her own person and let her do what she wanted?

 

“The white one.  Something about it.  I think I might have to have my way with you in the green room, if Chad has one, if you wear that.  You know what? Just bring it over. Don’t want to mess it up. _Hurry._ ”

 

“Aren’t you demanding,” he said, flipping the camera back to his face. “What did you need help with?” Ulquiorra propped the phone up against his laptop, so that he could gather what he needed. He had his wallet, keys, the two eyeliner pencils, his guitar and the case. Then he carefully folded the white dress pants and the rest of the outfit which he placed into the bottom of his bookbag.

 

“I need you, you know, I need _you_ , and I need you to help me find my look.  You’re the only person who knows Vega.”

 

He smirked at her for a moment. “I’ll be over there in five minutes. Stay like that.”

 

Ulquiorra kept his word, too. He arrived at Orihime’s dorm with his things in under five minutes. He nodded at several of the ladies who were in the lobby; they were starting to become familiar faces. He didn’t bother waiting for the elevator, entering the side door and taking the stairs to the second floor. He knocked on the redhead’s door and waited.

 

She opened it three seconds later, her body obstructed from his view as she hid it behind the door.  “Get in here,” she growled.

 

“Demanding,” he said, entering the room with a smirk on his face. Ulquiorra knew what was going to happen.

 

She was already naked, bent over with her hands at her ankles as she stepped out of the panties she had on when he came into the room, and that is the position he saw her in after he turned from setting his guitar case in the corner of the room.  “What are you waiting for?” She asked as she turned her face to the side, still bent over. “The pants fairies aren’t going to get those off for you.”

 

While Ulquiorra could look away from Nel’s body any time he chose to do so, he found that he could not turn his attention away from Orihime. “Hnnngh,” came the noise from his throat. He was kind of glad he woke up horny that morning and decided to take care of it instead of waiting for Orihime to get done with her stuff that she needed to do. He might be able to last longer this time. Without wasting another moment, Ulquiorra undid his jeans and walked up behind her. As soon as he reached the short woman, he pushed two fingers into her. “You waiting for something?” he asked in a seductive voice.

 

“Ungh, uh huh,” she replied.  “I’ve been waiting all day for my boyfriend to get here and fuck me, but you will do,” she teased.  She reached up to her desk and walked her hands over to the side of her bed. “I’ve been thinking about you all day, Ulquiorra, if you can’t tell…”  This morning had been the first she had not woken up in his room since their first time together. She missed him. She was already quite wet.

 

One of these days he might kneel down behind her and bury his face between her legs, but today was not that day. The idea of doing that to her sent delightful shivers down his spine. Maybe later. Ulquiorra had other plans. He was already shoving his jeans and boxers down just enough to let his cock spring free of its confines. “Yeah? You think about me although I can’t last long enough to get you off?” he asked as he lined himself up against her.

 

“You’re a good-looking guy, Ulquiorra.  You have a good-looking dick. I can be very superficial,” she laughed, despite their circumstances. “But honestly, sometimes a girl just wants to be stretched and pounded like a nice dough.  Orgasms are just a bonus. _For now_ ,” she said with a smile over her shoulder.  She slowly climbed up on the bed, allowing Ulquiorra to maintain his position, bending her knees under her to raise her ass high enough that he could sink into her without crouching down.  

 

Shit. With how she was moving just getting into position was enough to make him grab her hips. “You want it hard?” he asked snapping his hips against her ass. “Or do you want me to take it slow and drive you crazy?”

 

“We’re on a schedule, Cifer.  Fuck me like you mean it,” she said, putting her head down to rest her forehead on her bedspread.

 

For some reason, her saying his last name broke something in him. Ulquiorra reached up and grabbed a handful of dark red hair before he snaked a hand underneath her, cupping her nether lips and pressing against her. If she wanted to get fucked, he was going to give it all he had in him.

 

She squealed in response to his actions, somewhat intimidated but also exhilarated by the novelty and the power he was showing her.  “Ah, Ulquiorra, what-- Oh, hnngh,” she purred in response the his hand on her front.

 

“Shhh, you wanted this.” His pace was fast and hard as he slammed into her, not even thinking about the act of fucking her. He wanted to get her off. He had the stamina of going for hours with Nel. Ulquiorra could wait for Orihime to get off this time. As he slid in and out of that warm wetness that clung to him like damp silk, the green eyed man closed his eyes, enjoying the mewls coming from Orihime.

 

“Oh God,” she said after about two minutes of this.  He had never done this before, and she was close to falling apart.  Her hands crawled up to the wall and pushed her upper body up at a bent angle, her tits swinging violently with each thrust.

 

He had to smirk. A thought occurred to him and the smirk turned into a grin as he opened his eyes. He pulled Orihime’s head back more as he leaned against her back, his mouth latching onto the side of her neck. His other hand parted the folds of skin, trapping Orihime’s clit between his fingers. She felt so good around him. “”Fuck, Veggs,” he moaned.

 

Oh hell, here it comes, she thought as his fingers tightened around her clit, rubbing it back and forth as a byproduct of his hips’ movement.  She felt it. Bands of pressure fluttering, opening and closing against his punishing length, beckoning him to push deeper and deeper. The heat  was increasing and so was her volume, a chorus of involuntary ohs starting to fall from her lips.

 

He had to swallow back groan after groan. “Orihime. Stop that. I’m going to come and you--Oh fuck. You wanted to be fucked. I want you to come on me.” Ulquiorra moved the fingers on her clit just as fast as he was fucking her from behind. This orgasm felt different from all the previous ones. He could feel the tension building all over his body, not just in his abdomen.

 

“Oh fuck, Ulquiorra,” she hissed in and then a choked hngh was pushed from her as she fell apart.  “Ulquiorra, I’m coming!” she whimpered, soft whines coming from her nostrils in quick succession in time to the throbbing pulses of her walls on him.

 

Ulquiorra had never been very vocal while having sex or otherwise getting off. It wasn’t a thing for him. As soon as Orihime claimed that she was coming, the green-eyed man cried out along with her. Her body seemed to be draining him and as soon as the pulses went through his body, he slumped against her, breathing heavily, his mouth still against her neck. That orgasm seemed to shatter all the nerves in his body. It made his knees weak. “What the hell was that?” he huffed.

 

“Sorry, did I make a mess on you?  Sometimes that happens…” she said, biting her lip and twisting around a bit.  “Are you okay?” she said after she saw the look on his face. She was worried that he didn’t feel well.

 

“I think--I think we both made a mess of each other,” he said with a groan as he pushed himself off of her back. Sure enough his entire groin area was wet and sticky. “Screw it,” Ulquiorra stated. “Sorry if I was too… rough.”

 

She bit her lip and shook her head.  “I mean, I like some slow, gentle, lovemaking but,” she exhaled quickly.  “I, uh, Jesus. Oh god, it’s still going,” she murmured as a post-orgasmic contraction cause her skin to tingle.  “I have never come so hard in my life. That was awesome.”

 

The grin lit up his entire face. Slowly, Ulquiorra pulled out of Orihime and then turned her around. Tilting her face up, he kissed her, letting the touch linger. “I don’t think I could handle that if it happened every time. That was… That was life altering,” he said in a hushed voice.

 

“Kiss me again, Cifer,” she hummed, already pulling him back.  When their lips met, her breath shuddered and she closed hers over his upper lip, pulling it back with her softly.  “I wish we didn’t have that show tonight. I kind of want to just lay here and kiss you all night.”

 

He smiled against her mouth. “Same but we did commit to it. Business over pleasure. Once we get done we can try to do that again. Deal? Right now though. Vega Highwell and Obscuras IV have a show to put on.”

 

She laughed and nodded, pushing him up and getting off the bed.  “Let me get us some towels,” she said, grabbing a handful of hand towels from a wicker basket, wetting two and throwing him one after she had wrung it out. “Don’t worry, tomorrow is laundry day,” she said, ducking behind her desk to clean herself somewhat discreetly.

 

Ulquiorra turned his back to Orihime, the smile playing over his lips more. God, she got him. She understood him. She didn’t push the issues that he had with things. He gave a chuckle. It was hard to believe after two years the person who had ignited his interest would be his lover; his girlfriend. After he was cleaned off, Ulquiorra shed the rest of his clothes and walked over to where his bookbag sat and crouched down to retrieve his outfit. It was a good thing he brought backup underwear. It was also a good thing he felt comfortable enough to walk around naked in her room.

 

After she was clean, she looked into her closet.  She was at a loss. “What does Obscuras four like Vega to wear best?  Heads up!” she said as she tossed a dry towel in his direction.

 

He caught it and dried himself off. Ulquiorra walked over to where Orihime was standing and handed her both of the towels he had used. He moved past her and started rummaging through the various pieces of clothing before he pulled out a white dress. “This might be good. It does get hot under the lights though. What’s the vibe you want to put off? Opposites? Match with me? Striking?”

 

My my, she thought, he had given this a bit of consideration already.  “I usually go for a sexy, juicy vibe; you know, keep ‘em interested,” she said, pointing to a picture of herself with some stoner-looking guys on a dingy stage that was taped to her desk.  In the picture she was dressed in what looked like a plaid private school skirt, a tiny white tube top, a black choker and her hair up in a high, ratty ponytail. She looked like a busty Gwen Stefani.

 

His nose scrunched up. “I’m sorry but that’s not going to sit well with me. Keep it classy, is all the advice I have to offer,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Really?”  She was honestly surprised.

 

“Do you want to be taken seriously or just use your assets to get ahead?”

 

“I don’t think that they are mutually exclusive,” she countered.

 

He looked at her, then put the dress back into the closet. “Tits out then,” he quipped before going back over to the bed where he had dumped his own clothes. Ulquiorra didn’t like this feeling of jealousy coursing through his brain. He knew the first person to catcall Orihime was probably going to get punched in the face. He dressed quickly and then grabbed the eyeliner from his bag. “Mirror, like close up one?”

 

“Here you go,” she said, picking it up off her desk and passing it in his direction.  Her voice was subdued as she considered his words. He was her boyfriend. She wanted to take his feelings into consideration but she didn’t want to be held back.   A compromise, then.  

 

She turned to her closet and put on a nice, unadorned black satin set of full-coverage underwear and some sheer black waist-high stockings, then covered it up with a pair of black leather shorts.  They were very short, but they covered her ass. A white silk t-shirt with a gathered, plunging neckline topped it off. It showed off part of the bra, but not too much. She walked around the desk to show Ulquiorra.   “How’s this?”

 

Ulquiorra put the mirror down and then turned around to look Orihime over. She looked… She was hot. What she had on ignited the desire he thought had been milked from him. “Oh,” he said. 

 

“Oh?  Oh as in, “oh, that’s nice dear?” or oh as in “oh no….?”  What does oh mean?”

 

“Oh as in I want to bend you over again,” he said turning back to the mirror. He began to line his eyes with the black eyeliner.

 

“Oooh, nice touch,” Orihime commented, brushing out her hair.  She had planned to just wear it down so she could toss it around during the show.

 

His eyes shifted in her direction as he began to draw teal lines from his bottom lid all the way down to his jawline. “Thanks, I guess? This was always going to be my thing when I went public with Obscuras.”

 

She turned and caught a glimpse of the teal markings on his face.  They looked at once sad and artistic. They made his eyes seem to glow.  “Any particular story or inspiration for those?”

 

Ulquiorra looked at himself in the mirror before he set it back on the desk and put away his pencils. He then stuffed his rumpled clothes into the bag. “He who cries, remember?” he stated with a small smile on his face.

 

He sat on the side of her bed then and she walked over to him, and carefully, with one finger, so as not to ruin his handiwork, tilted his chin up and kissed him.  “I remember. You look… fascinating. And hot. I like this,” she said, gesturing to him with a head to toe motion. One more kiss and she turned to her desk to do her own makeup.

 

Looking down at his outfit, Ulquiorra didn’t think he looked hot. It was just a white pair of trousers with a black t-shirt and a white jacket over it. He had on black boots. It was nothing spectacular or stunning or hot about it. “Thanks,” he said again.

 

She turned and grinned at him and went back to lining her eyes.  She had done this a lot and was finished making herself up in less than ten minutes.  She’d done a very smoky eye and flushed-looking cheeks, but her lips were only glossed.  “I just need some bracelets or something and I’m ready to go, she said as her head came back up from her mirror.  She crossed the room to a shelf where she kept a box of costume jewelry and put a silver bangle on and some silver drop earrings.  “Okay, ready?” she asked, turning around to face him.

 

Ulquiorra liked the effect that the jewelry added. He tilted his head to the side before he crossed the room. He almost kissed her but the way her mouth looked, he didn’t want to mess it up. Instead he reached behind her and grabbed her ass with both hands. “You look wonderful,” he said before letting her go. All that he needed was his guitar and they could leave.

 

“Hmm, you too,” she said, brushing her hand over the front of his pants before he stepped away.  I’m just gonna grab my jacket and purse and we can go down.

 

Go down. Heh. A laugh left him. God, he had the mind of a young teenager. It was nothing but sex, sex, sex since he lost his virginity. Ulquiorra sighed before he turned away from her and then grabbed his guitar from where it sat in the corner.

 

***

 

The crowd at Sado’s wasn’t as large as it was on Saturday night, which was just fine by Orihime.  She thought of this show almost as a dress rehearsal. She worried though; this was Ulquiorra’s first live performance.  She didn’t want him to be disappointed.  It was early yet, though.  Thursday nights started late for a lot of people and it was still an hour before their set was scheduled to start.  She had seen a couple of familiar faces when she came in. Uryu Ishida was there with some other people from their chamber choir.  Mizuiro and Keigo were there. Tier Hallibel was even there, but she was always with her little entourage and probably didn’t have any interest in the entertainment.  There were a smattering of other people who were obviously not students, still lingering around after work with a second hot beverage. The person playing when they walked into the coffee house was just a ginger guy with some tribal drums and long dreadlocks who hummed and hupped along with the beat he was pounding out.  It was kind of weird.

 

Ulquiorra had seen the guy with blue hair. There was another guy with a red mohawk and another with blond hair standing near him. He had to scan the crowd several times before he spotted her. She was hanging off the guy with blue hair. Nel was there.

 

“Dammit,” Ulquiorra said. All of a sudden he was nervous. Maybe if he went over and asked Nel to leave, she’d go without a scene. He looked over at Orihime. “Hey...”

 

“Yeah, what’s up?” the short woman asked, making her way to the back of the house.

 

He followed after her. “Nel’s here and some guy she was talking to the day we found out who each other was.”

 

Orihime’s eyes widened marginally.  “Well, I hope she enjoys the show,” she said, her voice carrying a modest dose of doubt.  “Are you going to be okay?”

 

“Kind of nervous now,” he answered. Ulquiorra took a deep breath before closing his eyes and exhaling. It didn’t help.

 

She took his hand and pulled him after her.  “Come with me, we have to talk anyway. It’s a preshow rite.”

 

He knew nothing about what Orihime was going on about. He had no clue about what was supposed to happen before a gig. The only times he had performed for anyone was her and Sado. “What do we have to talk about?” he asked.

 

“Visualization. Strategy. Back-up plans,” they had gone through a door and it was suddenly much more quiet around them.  “Nel being here is not ideal, but there’s always something. Live performances are unpredictable. So, what are you going to do if you accidentally look up and see her face?” she asked, leaning against a counter in the small, makeshift green room they had entered.

 

He would bet that saying, “Freak the fuck out” would not be the correct response for this question. “Um, uh, pretend it’s you? Visualize someone else?” 

 

“You could do that.  That seems hard though.  The easy thing to do would just be to actually look at me.  Change your focus. There is no reason you have to hold her gaze and start to sweat it.  I’m here. I’m your partner and you can rely on me. I’m going to do the same thing if, heaven forbid, Dr. Aizen walks in.”

 

“You don’t think he would do you?”

 

“I really, really don’t.  But you know, if Nel gives me the dagger eyes, I’m looking away.  That’s not a failure on my part; it’s a performance technique. Anyway, my point is, it’s a good idea to just have a go-to thing in your back pocket to get you through a moment of terror.  I think looking at one another is a good one. It’s what I’m going to do. If you have a better idea for yourself go ahead and do it, but decide now or you risk freezing.”

 

Ulquiorra bit his lip as he thought about what Orihime said. He couldn’t worry about Nel. She was the one who screwed up their relationship. It wasn’t his job to make sure her feelings weren’t hurt. “Nel’s not here. It’s only me and you on that stage,” the green-eyed man said.

 

“There you go.  In your videos you have a fourth wall.  We have it on stage, too. I’m not actually Vega Highwell.  You’re not actually Obscuras IV. Those are who we are when we get on that stage, though.  They exist in an alternate universe. Ideally,” she laughed at her caveat. “So, the other thing, we may get catcalled or jeered.  People are just assholes. They think we should just let it roll off our backs. It has nothing to do with us. It has everything to do with that audience member being a dick.  By the way, it may seem like I’m trying to give you advice. I kinda am but mostly I’m not. I tell myself this stuff before every performance I ever do.”

 

“Orihime,” Ulquiorra said, opening his mouth but then he closed it. Now he was unsure about himself. He didn’t want to tell her what he was feeling only for her to run from him. 

 

“What is it?”

 

A shake of his head. “Nevermind. It’s not really important at the moment,” he replied.

 

“Come on, tell me,” she encouraged.  “We have time.”

 

“I...” He swallowed. It was three little damn words. He could do this. In the end, Ulquiorra chickened out. “Thank you.”

 

She smiled at him as if he was the sun in the sky.  “You’re welcome.” Her face dropped a moment later, “I hope it works and you don’t choke,” she joked and laughed after she said it.

 

He scowled. “I love you.” Her teasing him made him grow a backbone. He could show her that he would not choke on anything.

 

She froze, and her mouth fell open. Her face heated up and she wished more than anything that she didn’t have that makeup on her face, because she knew if she didn’t keep her shit together, it was going to get wrecked.  “I…” it came out as barely a breath. She swallowed and cleared her throat. “I love you, too.”

 

His face flushed with color and Ulquiorra bit his lip before grinning at her. “We can do this Veggs. We faced a lot of odds over the years. This is nothing, okay?”

 

She closed the short distance.  “This is nothing?” she asked with a grin before grabbing him by the collar and meeting him halfway for a soft kiss.  After she pulled back she was smiling like she was half asleep. “This is everything.”

 

Ulquiorra kissed her again. He wanted to work his mouth down her neck but he didn’t want to smear the eyeliner on his face. “This gig is nothing. Those people in that crowd are nothing. We are everything.”

 

Chad chose that moment to send Jesse in to knock on the door.  “Five minutes,” she said.

 

Orihime looked up into Ulquiorra’s eyes and put her hands on either side of his face, fingertips ghosting over the bottom of his jaw.  “We’re ready,” she said, nodding. “If anyone requests _Freebird,_ we give them the bird.  Agreed?” she said, showing him the one-fingered gesture she had in mind.

 

His lip curled. “Look, Lady, there are only two people allowed to play Freebird. That’s the group who performed it first and God himself,” Ulquiorra stated. It was obvious he had strong opinions about this.

 

Orihime threw her head back and laughed.  “I agree. Shall we?”

 

“Let’s do this.”

 

***

 

Orihime stood in front of a microphone.  Ulquiorra sat at a stool with his acoustic guitar slung over his shoulder to her right and slightly behind her, a second microphone positioned in front of  him as well. A small pair of spotlights illuminated them on a tiny little stage in the corner of the coffee shop. Orihime’s eyes scanned the crowd as Ulquiorra tuned his guitar.  Yep. Nel was there. Looked like Ichigo and that Michelle girl had made it as well. She took a deep breath, blew it out, and smiled as she turned on the microphone. She looked at Ulquiorra first, before she began to speak.

 

Ulquiorra gave her a small smile and nodded that he was ready. It was the truth. The butterflies that had been in his stomach were gone and there was nothing but the self-assured attitude that had been there before. They could do this.

 

Her smile turned into a grin and she faced the microphone again.  “Hey, everybody. Thanks for coming out tonight. We’re Vega four and this is our first show here, so we hope you have a good time.  This first song is a favorite of ours. It’s called All My Life.” She turned her head back to Ulquiorra, who played a single note for her, and she began to sing.  They had kept the arrangement almost identical to the first time they had sung it together in the practice room almost two weeks ago. The crowd quieted as they started the song, the familiar tune sounding different in Orihime’s voice.

 

His eyes were trained on Orihime. That’s the only way he was going to get through this. As he strummed the guitar and moved his fingers along the strings, he listened to her. He sang the chorus of the song with her. He had to restrain himself from overpowering Orihime’s voice. They had to find a balance.

 

Orihime was pleased with how they sounded, and by the time they were onto the second verse people were bobbing their heads and talking again, enjoying the music.  That was what was to be expected in this kind of venue; people weren’t there to sit in rapt silence and listen to the performances. When the song ended, there was modest applause.  Orihime grinned and thanked the audience, then looked over to Ulquiorra and her grin widened as she waited for his reaction.

 

His eyes seemed huge. The rush of adrenaline that spread through his brain was pleasant. There was no fight or flight response. He was happy to stay on that stage and sing with Orihime for the rest of the night. He grinned at her, not even caring if there were other people around to witness it. They had done it; well the show wasn’t over, only one song, but they had done it! He nodded at her to continue.

 

They launched into the next song and glided from one to the next without incident until it was time for the set break.  Orihime turned to him once again, “Do you want to announce the break?” He had yet to directly address the audience.

 

He shrugged. “I can but what do I say? You have more experience with this than I do,” Ulquiorra answered.

 

“Just say thanks and that we’ll be back after a short break.”

 

It was that easy? Ulquiorra rolled his eyes at himself. He spoke into the microphone positioned in front of him. He had pushed it away slightly before he replied to Orihime. “Thanks for listening. We’ll be back after a short break,” he said, before standing up. The green-eyed man put his guitar on the stand provided by Chad. He helped Orihime off the stage and waited to follow her.

 

She was giddy.  It had gone so well!  They had sounded amazing together!  She took his hand and dragged him into the backroom, then jumped on him.

 

“You were so awesome!  We were so awesome!” she squealed.

 

“Hey,” he said, almost tipping over. “I know! You sounded amazing. We’re doing a great job so far. It was kind of shaky in the beginning, at least for me.”

 

She kissed him.  “I love you. This is just the best day ever.  I can’t even believe we still have another half a set to do.”

 

The realization of that hit him like a punch to the face. Ulquiorra untangled himself from Orihime and went to sit down. He needed a minute to process this. There were bottles of water on the table in the room and Ulquiorra reached for one. He opened it and drained the entire bottle before he could speak. “Just the first half has been nerve wracking. I mean it comes and goes in waves but still… I’ll be calm and then I won’t be.”

 

Orihime nodded.  “I can understand, but no one would ever know, based on your performance.  You were a champ.” She sighed, happily. “What do you want to do after our set is over?  Go crash? Go celebrate?”

 

“Eat, fuck your brains out again and then sleep. Any of those will work,” Ulquiorra stated.

 

“How about all of those?”

 

He didn’t have a chance to respond.  There was a knock on the door. It was early; they had just gotten into the backroom.

 

“Who is it?” Orihime called.

 

“Uryu Ishida.  Can I come in?”

 

Orihime looked at Ulquiorra, confused for a minute.  Then a look of recognition flashed across her face. “Do you mind?  It’s a guy from my choir.”

 

“It’s cool, he can come in.”

 

Orihime went to the door and opened it.  Uryu was taller than she remembered and she had to take a step back to see his face easily.  “Hi, um, come in,” she said.

 

“Thanks.  I just wanted to stop by and tell you that you guys sounded really good,” he said, kind of obviously checking her out in the shorts she had on.

 

“Er, thanks, Uryu.”

 

“Yeah, so  I wanted to ask you why you chose to sing that whore song.  You don’t appear to sleep with men for money, neither do you offer your services to women, but despite this, rumors have been swirling about you sleeping your way around the department.  Some people even have said that we’ve slept together,” the black-haired beanpole said, perching himself on the counter.

 

“Uh, Uryu, I hope you um, put those rumors _to bed_ ,” she said, snickering at her own pun.

 

“Oh my god, Orihime.  Puns? Really?” he scoffed.  “And here I came back here to flatter you.”

 

“Sorry, dude,” Orihime said, “I don’t know what to tell you.  I was just telling Ulquiorra the other day that I am decidedly uncool.”

 

“The only person she’s sleeping with is me,” Ulquiorra said, instantly not liking this guy and his pretentious attitude. It was like he had a stick up his ass. “As for our song selection, I don’t think you’re part of our group so why judge us for the song?”

 

This information seemed to change Uryu’s tune.  “Oh, I didn’t realize. I mean, you obviously have tension but… Anyway.  I’ll see you on Wednesday, Orihime,” he said, turning to the door, but looking over his shoulder at her ass again.  He left without another word.

 

“What a weirdo…” Orihime hissed after he left, drawing out the O and staring hard at Ulquiorra.

 

He stared back with an unimpressed look. “The next time he looks at your ass like that I’m going to punch him.” Jesus when did he get so violent, and over a woman too? He hated confrontation, but yet, here he was ready to throw down over her. “Why is everyone saying you’re sleeping with other people? Do I need to dick you down in public for them to believe you?”

 

Orihime shook her head.  “I don’t know, but I think the people in my department are really, really insular, and only really date other people in the department.  You’re not a music or theater major, so they don’t constantly see your face, so they probably don’t really know you exist, apart from Keigo, Miz, Ichigo, that Michelle girl and now weird ol’ Uryu.  I haven’t been social with them, either, so no one has asked me directly. I’m a target because of my aunt; people often think I didn’t get here on my own merit. Oh well, it’s only a matter of time before people realize we’re together.”

 

His mouth formed a thin line. If people didn’t know they were together, Ulquiorra would have to change that. He was just about to say something when there was another knock at the door but instead of waiting for a response, Chad just walked in. “Oh, it’s you.”

 

“Hey guys, um, I have a request, if you don’t mind,”

 

“We are not playing Freebird.”

 

“Heh heh, nah.  No, I was wondering if you’d play Hallelujah.”

 

Ulquiorra instantly sat up straight in his seat. “You mean… But we--Oh.” Chad meant just him singing the song. “Is that okay with you Orihime?”

 

“If you’re okay with it, I’m okay with it.”

 

He nodded and then looked at Chad. “Any particular time you want this done? Close out the next half? Begin the next half? I’d like Orihime sitting in the audience for it.”

 

“How about close?  Or second to last, whatever man, I just want to hear it,” the big guy said with a grin.

 

“It’ll be done but,” Ulquiorra pointed a finger at Chad. “I don’t ever want to pay eight bucks for a cappuccino and a coffee ever again.” He finished his statement with a smile to show Chad he was teasing.

 

“You’ll have free capps until Christmas, man.”

 

After the other male closed the door, Ulquiorra huffed a breath through his mouth, letting his cheeks puff out. “Any more interruptions?” he asked, looking at the petite woman. “Are you okay with me singing it by myself?”

 

“Yeah, I really don’t mind at all.  I want to hear it, too,” she grinned at him.  She was thrilled that he was getting such positive attention in real life.

 

“Okay. I need to use the restroom and then I’ll be back,” he said standing up. “Want to escort me?”

 

“Yes?” she said, suspecting something, but what, she had no idea.

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “I have no clue where it is and you can protect me if I run into She-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named.”

 

“I shall protect you, Ernie,” Hermione - no, Orihime - said, brandishing an imaginary wand and making her way to the door.

 

He had a chuckle while they found their way to the to the employee bathroom. As much as he wanted to have his way with her, Ulquiorra refrained from pulling Orihime into the bathroom. After he was done using the facilities he washed his hands and looked at himself. The eyeliner was holding up pretty well. He was still having some reservations about performing the song live.

 

Orihime stood outside the door and saw Chad walk past and made eye contact, nodding to the man.  He stopped and smiled at her.

 

“So, how is it sounding so far?”  she asked.

 

He gave her a thumbs up.  “Really good, Vega. I didn’t think I’d hear the kind of stuff from you that I heard tonight.  I’m pleasantly surprised.”

 

“You thought I was all lullabies and Jessica Rabbits, didn’t you?”

 

The big guy shrugged and smiled.  She was right.

 

“Well, I’m glad I surprised you.  I know you were more excited about Ulquiorra than me.  It was obvious during our meeting last weekend. I don’t blame you.  He is brilliant,” she said, a knowing half-smile on her face.

 

“Uh, well, it’s just, he already has a huge following and it’s kind of a big deal, and…” Chad stopped talking as the bathroom door opened.

 

Ulquiorra heard quiet murmurs on the other side of the door. He had cleaned the teal streaks off his face but left the black eyeliner there. He looked at Orihime and then Chad. They had been talking about him. They had to have been. “Are we ready to go on again?”

 

She turned around and saw how his face had changed.  Although she liked the effect of the tear marks, she preferred him like this; she was free to grab his cheeks and kiss him.  So she did. “Yep,” she said after she pulled back.

 

He gave Orihime a hungry look before turning back to Chad. “I think Hallelujah is going to be the last song we do,” Ulquiorra said. “If that’s cool.”

 

“Yeah, man, like I said, we just want to hear it,” he said, looking at Orihime and smiling.

 

Ulquiorra raised and eyebrow but said nothing. He gestured for the redhead to go ahead of him. He had composed himself in the bathroom, while he was wiping off his face. He could do this. He knew why he was going to do this. She was walking ahead of him.

 

They exited the back area to the main room and made their way back to the stage.  They were greeted by familiar faces on the way. Ichigo called over several heads, “Sounds good, Ollie!” and winked.  Keigo and Mizuiro crowded Orihime before she reached the stage to say something complimentary. They knew enough about performing to get out of her way quickly and graciously after saying what they wanted to say.  Then Orihime stepped up the small elevated platform and looked behind her, waiting for her boyfriend.

 

When he heard that stupid orange idiot call out, Ulquiorra raised a middle finger and replied, “Blow me, Ivan.” He was feeling a bit sassy and on top of the world. No one stopped him though and soon he was on the stage and sitting on the stool again. He had his guitar in his hands and was strumming it, listening to see if it was still tuned. He had to make minimal adjustments. He looked at Orihime and nodded, deciding to take the reins. “Thanks for sticking around,” Ulquiorra said into his microphone. “If you’ve forgotten who we are, we are Vega IV. We’ll be entertaining you nice folks by singing a couple more songs.”

 

The crowd erupted into applause which made Ulquiorra smirk. Maybe this whole being out in public thing wasn’t so bad.

 

Orihime liked this take-control side of him.  She raised an appreciative brow at him and smirked before she nodded her readiness and they launched into Every You, Every Me.

 

When the song ended, Ulquiorra lead her into song after song until it was his turn. His stomach was in knots. He sat there for a moment. How was he supposed to do this? 

 

Orihime turned to face him.  He had said he wanted her in the audience for this.  His eyes were downcast, and she walked over to murmur in his ear, “You still want me to go sit?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded and lifted his face up to capture her mouth in a kiss. When he pulled back he gazed at her. “Go sit. I’ll get myself sorted out,” he told her.

 

Orihime kissed his forehead and nodded.  She stopped at her mic and said, “Thank you so much for tonight, guys.  I’ve had such a great time. We’ve got one more treat for you, but I need to sit down now,” she chuckled and turned her mic off, stepping off the side of the stage and finding a seat near the front of it.

 

Looking out into the crowd, Ulquiorra caught a glimpse of green hair out in the crowd. Nel was coming closer to the stage. It didn’t matter. She didn’t matter. She had done everything she could to destroy what they had. Grabbing the stool and his guitar, Ulquiorra moved them until they were in front of the microphone that Orihime used. It must have been Chad that dimmed the house lights until it was almost black inside the venue and shone a single light on Ulquiorra. 

 

He adjusted the microphone after he sat down and Ulquiorra did one more sweep of the crowd. He could see Nel out of the corner of his eye. He could see Orihime sitting almost in front of him. A sweet smile came over Ulquiorra’s face. “There was a person I met two years ago on the internet. Didn’t know a damn thing about them. They reached out to me. I was in a low point of my life then. I was lost. I thought I had come to terms with things that were going on around me. Vega got me to open my eyes. It was by chance that we met on September fifth. I got paired up with her in a class; three classes actually.”

 

There was laughter through the crowd.

 

“My point is that Vega is my best friend. She knows me better than my family; better than the people I hung out with. I’m dedicating this song to her because I love her. She knew when I--She just knew. This is Hallelujah.”

 

He started singing. His voice broke on that same line. It was always when the _cold and broken hallelujah_  part came out that he couldn’t contain the emotion inside of him. He shortened the ending only repeating the word Hallelujah five times. When he finished, the people standing inside of that coffeehouse were silent. 

 

Ulquiorra swallowed. Did they hate it? “Thank you.”

 

Orihime had started crying as soon as he started telling their story.  She had pulled it back together enough to only have to wipe a stray tear here and there as he began the song all the way until the climax, where her nose tingled and her eyes welled again and she had to sniffle constantly, her throat as tight as a vice.  She was as entranced as the rest of the crowd, though. She, too, did not want to disrupt the poignancy of the moment he created after the song had ended. It was only after he said his thanks that she leapt to her feet. Before she reached the stage the rest of the crowd was crowing and whistling and applauding, many of them also getting up to show their appreciation.

 

Orihime stood at the front of the stage and held out her hand to Ulquiorra.  She would have had to scream to be heard by him over the noise of the audience, but she said loud enough for anyone standing beside her to hear, “I love you so much. Thank you.”

 

He kissed her in response. “Let’s get out of here!” he shouted.

 

She nodded and climbed up onto the stage to get her water bottle and hair tie and miscellaneous items she had left there and then followed Ulquiorra off the stage to the back room where their stuff was.  Chad met them at the door.

 

“Man.  I can’t even… That was magical.  Thanks,” the tall man said, looking pointedly at Ulquiorra.

 

“I tried,” he said with a polite smile. “You owe me capps until Christmas, Sado.”

 

“I also owe you a paycheck.  Stop at the office on your way out, okay?”

 

Ulquiorra looked at Orihime with a raised eyebrow. “We were getting paid for this?” he asked her quietly once they were in the “green room”. 

 

“Usually when I get paid I sign a contract or fee agreement but I think Chad was too excited when he met you last weekend to even think about it.  I don’t know what to expect but they probably pay less than the going rate; we’re students. But you’re a big deal, so who knows.”

 

He scoffed. “I’m not a big deal Orihime. I’m me,” Ulquiorra said. He started gathering his stuff, putting his guitar back in his case when he heard screaming outside the door. What the hell was that noise?

 

“What in the world?” Orihime said, turning to face the sound.  “Is there another exit?” She looked around, hopeful that there would be.  There was not.

 

Ulquiorra poked his head out the door. He could see the stage from where he was. Nel was on it and she had the microphone.

 

“THAT WAS OBSCURAS FOUR! HE’S ON YOUTUBE! HE IS ON INSTAGRAM. ULQUIORRA CIFER IS OBSCURAS FOUR!”

 

Oh fuck.


	14. Taco Truck

Ulquiorra couldn’t go anywhere on campus without someone running up to him asking him for his autograph. Even the music department was begging him to join the dark side. The guitar teacher even made a joke about them having cookies. People took video and pictures of that single night he performed with Orihime. His face was on YouTube. His face was plastered on Instagram. He should have known this would happen. It was his own fault.

 

He had shoved Orihime into Nel’s face constantly since he found out who Vega was. He’d practically been asking for her to out him. And Nel had outed him. She had posted pictures of him on Instagram and tagged him. He wanted to shut everything down but once again, Orihime talked some sense into him.

 

He was on his way into the building where his one music class was held and ran into one of the teachers. “Pardon me,” Ulquiorra said.

 

It was fully expected that the guy would try to solicit him for a music degree but the teacher just had a snotty look on his face as he stared at Ulquiorra. It made the green-eyed male side step the guy with glasses and continue on his way. 

 

When Friday came around, he found himself laying on Orihime’s bed and talking to Tatsuki. If he could have been, Ulquiorra would have been a permanent fixture in the room.

 

“So, tell me again why you don’t just go be famous?   I mean, if the money people were banging down my door I’d be like, ‘yeah, come in and have some tasty crumpets and shit,’ but you’re all like, ‘Nah, dawg, fuck off’.  What’s the deal with that?”

 

He sighed. “We’ve gone over this… What this is the third time? I want to be around Orihime. I can’t do that if I’m in California,” Ulquiorra replied. He scowled at the black-haired female and rolled onto his stomach, burying his face into the pillow he laid on. “I know Orihime would not quit school and come with me. Besides, they’re only offering me like a million dollars for four albums. I’d much rather produce my own shit and keep all my money.”

 

“You know… Not that I want to lose my roommate, but if she could transfer to a school in California at the end of the semester, and you asked her to, she would probably follow you out there.  Just sayin’.”

 

“You ever think I might be waiting for the end of the semester to ask her that? I would love a chance to get away from these idiots and Nel.” Ulquiorra lifted his head. “How long are you going to be gone tonight? Should we just go to my room?”

 

She propped up on an elbow and smirked at him.  “I plan on rolling back here no earlier than tomorrow afternoon, if I’m lucky.  And I’m _always_ lucky.”  She chuckled at herself and laid back down.  Then she groaned. “Oh wait, are you guys just going to watch Harry Potter again and paint each other’s toenails?  Because I’m going to be very disappointed if that’s the case. How many more movies do you have left, _MacMillan?”_

 

Ugh. Ever since Tats found out his nickname she never missed an opportunity to use it. “I plan on fucking her brains out on your bed. We have two or three more to go, I think.” Ulquiorra sighed. “When is she getting back?”

 

Tatsuki lifted her arm and looked at an imaginary watch.  “Let me just check the Hime-timer… yes, it looks like she’ll be back in I don’t know minutes.  Didn’t she say she had to practice with that hot pianist? You guys had class together this afternoon.  Didn’t she tell you when she’d be done?”

 

He pouted. “It’s not like we get a chance to talk when everyone interrupts us. Just forget about it.”

 

“Oh, hey, you’re going to go to her concert class, right?  Isn’t that in like three weeks?” Tatsuki flipped over to her stomach and looked at the calendar on her phone.  “Yeah, it’s October seventeenth.”

 

“Of course I am. I wouldn’t miss a performance of hers,” Ulquiorra replied. “I just wish things were different.”

 

“Well buck up, Ernie.  Wanna be my date?” she asked, flashing her eyebrows at him in a comical manner.

 

“I’ll ask my woman if I can take her hot lesbian friend as a date,” he said, rolling his eyes and giving Tatsuki a smirk.

 

“I’m bi, Ulq.  But, sorry, I’m not into emo guys.  Only dudes with shorter hair than mine.”

 

He laughed this time. “You’re just mad because I look more like girl from the back than you do,” he teased. His phone vibrated and Ulquiorra looked at the screen. It was another email from some guy trying to pose as some agent. He also had a ton of Instagram messages and Youtube comments although he hadn’t uploaded anything in about a week. “I’m gonna text Orihime. Go get laid or whatever you do at Kudo Club,” he remarked, waving a hand as if to shoo her away.

 

She laughed at him.  “Yeah. I’ll get out of your hair,” she said, hopping off her bed and into her shoes.  “And just so we’re clear, I’m all girl from behind,” she said, slapping her ass as she walked out of the room, laughing.

 

  * Tats makes me want to drink. When are you coming back? I'm hungry… for you and pizza or whatever you want. I think it’s your turn to pick. How come you didn’t tell me about your concert class on the 17th? Tats wants me to escort her.



 

He sent the message off to Orihime and shut his eyes waiting for her to message him back.

 

***

 

“Jesus, Orihime.  This is crap. Absolute garbage.  What have you been doing? Gargling glass shards?”

 

Orihime was stunned.  Yes, she had a little cold.  She frequently got little colds as the weather turned chilly and the air got drier.  “I have a cold, Ichigo. It happens to the best of us.”

 

“No. This is no good. You are going to need to be better by the time that concert class rolls around.  I’m performing in it as a soloist, too, so I don’t want to look stupid playing for some hack who can’t sing during the same performance.”

 

Orihime scoffed.  “Can’t sing? You heard me at Sado’s.  You know I can sing.”

 

“I know your little boyfriend Oliver can sing.  I don’t know what you were doing. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t unpleasant; it was just… meh.”

 

“That’s not what you said after that wedding last weekend,” she countered, her feelings hurt.

 

“That’s because you were really singing at that wedding.  Ave Marie sounds good coming out of your mouth.”

 

“You’re just like everyone else, I see,” she muttered.  Her phone buzzed and she read Ulquiorra’s message. “I’m done for today.  We’re still on for that cocktail party on Tuesday, right?”

 

“Yeah.  I’m surprised you managed to find us a gig that pays enough to get me out of Kailey’s bed.”

 

“Oh for God’s sake, her name is _HAILEY_.  Anyway, it’s just going rate. Vega Highwell isn’t a student; only Orihime Inoue is. Vega Highwell pulls the big-girl rates,” she said, closing up her books and packing her bag. “See you next week, jerk.”

 

“Not if I see you first, _Vega_.”

 

She walked out of the practice room and out of the building into the evening air.  It was almost dark already. She pulled up Ulquiorra’s text again and sighed. She really hadn’t told him about the concert class?  She was sure that she had. She had to call him.

 

“Hello, Woman,” Ulquiorra said into the phone. “Where are you and what are you doing?”

 

“Hey Handsome, I’m just leaving the Fine Arts building and I’m walking home. Are you there?”

 

“If by home you mean your room, then yes. I’m here all snuggled under the blankets and I even brought pajamas,” he replied.

 

“Okay.  I’m going to say tacos tonight and if I can get my hands on some liquor on my way over there, I think I may need it.  Today was a shitshow.”

 

This made Ulquiorra sigh. He did not want to broach this subject with her. “No,” he said. “Tacos are fine but no drinking.”

 

This had never come up before.  Orihime was intrigued. “Are you really anti-drinking or are you just anti-me-drinking?”

 

“I like you sober rather than tipsy?” he said. “What can I do to make today better?”

 

“You’ve never seen tipsy Vega. You might like her.  Anyway, you can just be there when I get there. That’s enough.  Also, did I really not tell you about the concert class?” she was walking fast now, it was getting darker and she was anxious to get back.  Plus it was an uphill walk back to upper campus, so she was slightly out of breath as she spoke.

 

Ulquiorra tried to think back if she did mention it. “You might have told me but between the people contacting me and the assholes in real life, it might have skipped my brain. It’s been a total shit show since Nel did her bullshit.”

 

“It’s just as likely that I didn’t mention it; I mean, the space between us meeting and the Vega IV show was only a week, and since then it’s been chaos.  Anyway, I’m sorry. I was practicing for that tonight.”

 

“You know, I love spending every moment I can with you but you need to do what you need to do and I have to respect that, Orihime.” Ulquiorra chewed on his bottom lip for a moment. “I’m here, just come home. We’ll go get tacos. We’ll watch our movie. I’ll give you a mind-blowing orgasm and we can cuddle.”

 

“I’ll be right there. I love you,” she said, ending the call and breaking into a run.  She didn’t get far before she had to stop and cough. Her cold was almost gone but her throat was still irritated.  She slowed back down to a quick walk. She had about ten more minutes to go.

 

There was another thing she never got around to telling Ulquiorra about, and that was the pictures she had received from _Gamuza333_ on Instagram. In the end, it hadn’t mattered because Nel leaked them herself. Orihime was reminded of this as she walked past Robinson and saw Nel standing outside on the sidewalk standing next to some guy vaping in the designated area.  Orihime crossed the street before she got into eyeshot and hoped she wouldn’t be spotted as she passed by in the increasing darkness.

 

Nel curled her lip but stayed where she was. She saw Orihime. Ugh. The redhead was perfect and petite and everything that Nel wasn’t. Jugo nudged her shoulder, pointing at Ulquiorra’s girlfriend. Teal hair shook back and forth. It wasn’t worth her time.

 

Instead of the fame game blowing up in Ulquiorra’s face, the guy had practically dropped off the face of the planet except for going to class, occasionally visiting his dorm room and eating in public. He wouldn’t even sit beside Nel while in Algebra. People flocked to him. He was adored. She thought leaking the pictures of them together would have some negative effect on him. It didn’t. She caught flack for that.

 

Cifer was just a bad taste in her mouth now. Nel would let Orihime go this time.

 

Six minutes later, Orihime unlocked her door, stepped out of her shoes, dropped her bag and flopped into bed, face-down, next to Ulquiorra.  “Did I ever tell you how much of a jerk Ivanhoe Jerkosaki is? A colossal jerk. How was your afternoon? She asked, picking her face up out of the covers and kissing him.

 

“I know what a jerk Ivan is. Kick him in the shin or fire him and find a new piano player,” Ulquiorra said, staring at her. “I missed you.”

 

She brought her eyes to his and hummed.  “Me too. Damn you look good. C’mere,” she mumbled, pulling him toward her as she rolled onto her back.  “You are the best.”

 

“I look like a ghost. Speaking of which, how is the cold?” He asked pressing his chest against her body. “Tell me about your day before you get frisky.”

 

“Okay, honey,” she teased, using a derpy voice to mimic what she thought sounded like an old half of an old couple.  “I thought I was on the mend but Ichigo said,” and here she paused, screwing up her features into an unpleasant expression and taking on a nasal, mocking tone, “Orihime you sound like crap you are going to embarrass me at your concert class if you’re still sick.”  She slid her eyes over to Ulquiorra when she was finished with her little role-play and curled her lip to display her displeasure.

 

He bent his head down and kissed a spot on her neck. “Mmmm you smell good. I bet you taste good,” Ulquiorra said sucking on the same spot.

 

“Help yourself, Hotshot,” she purred in response.  Ichigo could go fuck himself. Or Hailey, the poor thing.  She didn’t care. She was here for this.  

 

Ulquiorra listened to that noise and smiled as he made his way to the other side of her neck, scraping his teeth gently against the skin. “So you were saying?” he asked almost sitting up.

 

“Was I?  I think I was saying let’s get naked.”

 

“What else happened today to make you want to drink?” Ulquiorra asked. He was trying to keep his mind off what he had discussed with Orihime’s roommate.

 

“I saw Nel on my way back here.  She didn’t do anything though. And also things that happened earlier this week…  My voice professor. I don’t want to upset you or anything, and I can handle it, I’m sure, but he’s getting worse.  I wonder…” she sighed and stopped.

 

“You wonder what? Are we talking about Aizen? Isn’t he the one with glasses?” Ulquiorra’s mouth pulled into a deep frown. “That asshole gave me a dirty ass look yesterday. All I did was accidentally run into him. I apologized.”

 

She took a deep breath.  “He scolded me for my lack of vocal clarity.  I made a big deal about having a cold. Then he tried to give me a shoulder massage.  It was very… creepy. I know I keep using that word but it the most accurate one. Anyway, I was thinking that I wonder if I’d be able to ask for a transfer to a different vocal professor but I know how they work.  They circle the wagons to protect themselves as a department. The only thing I can do is quit or transfer to a different school. I’m not leaving you, so that’s out.”

 

Since she brought it up… “I’m thinking about signing one of those deals,” Ulquiorra said. He moved off of Orihime and sat beside her, nibbling on his thumbnail. “My mom has a place in Cali that I could stay at. She could help me navigate things. You could come with me.”

 

Orihime’s guts ran cold when he started talking about leaving.  But when he offered for her to come her eyebrows lifted. “Seriously?”

 

He nodded. “I know that we’ve only known each other for a like a month now but...” Ulquiorra shifted his gaze to the side and then back to her. “We’ve known each other for longer than that.”

 

“Yes, we have.  And I would love to go, honestly. I worry about money though, if my aunt doesn’t agree… Hypothetically, I could just work until I qualify for residency and then maybe go to a state school? I could take out loans until I get control of my trust.  It’s doable. But, I mean, would you want me to come?” Her face crumbled as she asked. She knew he loved her and she loved him, but this was big. “I mean, would I be in the way?”

 

His heart felt pain as he looked at her face. “Does it matter? I don’t want to go out there by myself. You rocketed me to this fame that I have. If you never got the gig at Sado’s, then Nel wouldn’t have pulled her shit and I wouldn’t have a millions subs on YouTube or as many Instagram followers. This wasn’t just my doing.”

 

Her eyes slowly rose to his.  “Do you regret it?”

 

“Why would I regret it? If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t change anything,” he said.

 

She smiled then, leaning over to kiss him. “In that case, just let me know what you decide as soon as possible.  There’s music schools everywhere. I just need to know where you’re going, and I’ll join you.”

 

“On the other hand I don’t want to cause you turmoil with your aunt. If she says no then I won’t go. You have friends here too. You’d be leaving all that behind for me.”

 

“Tatsuki would understand.  Keigo and Mizuiro would focus on their other ensembles.  I like them but they are nothing to me compared to you. What other friends are you referencing?  Weird ol’ Uryu Ishida? Ichigo “I don’t know my girlfriend’s real name” Kurosaki? That Michelle girl?  It’s not like I’ve branched out that much here. I’ve kind of put all of my eggs in a few baskets, concentrated on yours.”

 

Ulquiorra thought this over. He didn’t have much here except his father. There was Chad but the guy was only friendly with him because he owed him. “I’ll think about it some more. There’s a lot to sift through. We could try the long-distance thing. I don’t want to do that, but we could.”

 

Orihime shook her head.  “I didn’t want to say anything because I don’t want you to worry about something that might be all in my head, but I think the rumors and stuff about me have really kind of become entrenched here.  I don’t know how much longer I would last at OSU with or without you.”

 

“Why though? Why did the rumors become an issue?” Ulquiorra shook his head. A couple of salty bitches and all of a sudden Orihime had a scarlet letter on her. “I kind of wish we revealed our identities to each other before school started. It would have made things easier.”

 

“Well, we had our reasons.  And like you said, I’d do it all over the same way.  I don’t know exactly how but people treat me like a disease or an easy target.  Only the guys in my theory class are decent. I guess Kurosaki is fine; he’s an equal opportunity asshole so it has nothing to do with me personally.  The rest of the gossip mongers in my department can take a long walk off a short pier, but my real problem is Aizen. Clearly he’s taken an unprofessional interest in me.  I don’t know how far he would push the issue but I know that if I get on his bad side, I’m done here.”

 

He’d been hearing about this Creepy McFuckface for a while now. Ulquiorra did not like him at all. “Anyway to quietly transfer to another school?”

 

“Yeah.  Just switch at semester I guess.”

 

“I’m not going to throw my education away if I make it big. I’m going to juggle college and this thing,” Ulquiorra said. “I need something when my fame and good looks run out.”

 

She snorted.  “You’re going to age like George Clooney.  But I think you’re right to focus on both.  Maybe you should talk to your mom. I know you usually avoid her, but she might be a valuable resource for someone in your position.”

 

“I don’t--” he stopped before the words came out as a whine. “My mom doesn’t think I’ll make it. She thinks that I’m too soft for L.A. I don’t know if she’ll give me the support I need.”

 

Orihime pursed her lips and nodded.  He would know, not her. “I trust you on this one.  I don’t know her from Adam. It’s too bad though, to have someone that close and not be able to capitalize on it.  But I have a question for you. Do _you_ think you’re too soft for L.A.?”

 

Ulquiorra was quiet. “I’m too introverted for L.A. I’m not social enough for it. I can take criticism and the bad reviews. I’ve done it for years on YouTube. I don’t like the attention though.”

 

Again a nod.  “Sounds to me like you’re not too soft.  You’re just right. You know what makes you happy and what doesn’t.  Maybe L.A. is just a place where you go to work; where you collaborate with people to record and then fly back home; wherever that is?”

 

He played with a lock of her hair, wrapping it around his finger and then letting it fall loose. He did this for several minutes before Ulquiorra looked up at Orihime. “My home is wherever you are. You go back to Minnesota or wherever you’re from, I’d be there. You want to stay here, we can.”

 

A warm current flowed through her.  “I love you,” she said, softly, looking up at him.  “We’ll be fine. We just have to make some decisions.  As long as we are together we’ll be fine. One of these decisions should probably be do we get tacos from the taco truck near Sado’s or just the drive-thru at Taco Bell?”

 

“I think the taco truck. I don’t feel like spending most of the night in the bathroom.”

 

“Psssht.  There is nothing wrong with the Bell, you taco snob.  But I could go for some variety. Are you ready to go or do you want to lie here a bit more?”

 

He gave her a smile. “I’m hungry for food. Then your body,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Do you want me to drive or do we brave the people? Or do we wear disguises?  You could be a masked bandito and I could be… I dunno. What do you think?” she asked, a playful smile on her lips as she imagined him wearing a black eye mask.

 

“You have a vivid imagination, Veggs. Has anyone ever told you that?”

 

She sighed and threw a pillow onto his stomach.  “You’re the first. Come on, get up,” she said, standing and holding out a hand toward him.  “Walk or drive?”

 

“Drive, it’s Friday, down by Sado’s is gonna be busy. We’re going to have to walk to the truck,” he answered, grabbing her hand and standing up. As soon as he was vertical, Ulquiorra scooped Orihime up, kissing her.

 

She hummed into it, pressing firmly and smiling as she kissed him back.  When he set her down, she wrapped her arms around his body and pressed her cheek into his chest.  “I love you,” she said. Then something in her room caught her eye. “Oh, I’m glad we’re driving, actually.  I’ve got something for you to hear,” she said, grabbing her phone and aux cable for the car. “The Vega Highwell Quartet have been practicing and we did some recording before I rehearsed my classical pieces today.  Wanna hear it while we drive?”

 

“You know I love hearing anything that comes out of your mouth,” he said to her. “What song is it? Or what piece is it?”

 

“We recorded three,” she said, leading the way to the staircase.  “Fly Me to the Moon, Someone to Watch Over Me, and,” she paused to laugh, “a little ode to Jessica Rabbit, Why Don’t You Do Right.”

 

“Mister Sinatra, eh?” Ulquiorra cleared his throat. “Moon River… Wider than a mile… Shit… I forgot the words.”

 

“Hmmm,” her eyes narrowed. “Look them up because I want a serenade on the way to the taco truck.”

 

“If I’m gonna sing you a song you know where you can find it,” he said, smirking at her. “Come, Woman. Food awaits.”

 

***

 

The recording was good.  It was rough; it was obviously just a rehearsal recording and the mix wasn’t the best; the drum was overpowering and the piano was too close to microphone, but they obviously sounded rehearsed and cohesive as an ensemble.  After the songs were finished and they were getting out of the car, Orihime spoke, “So, our first gig is Tuesday. You wanna come and pretend to be a roadie? Or my personal security?” she chuckled.

 

“I would love to be your personal bodyguard because if you sing like that, I’m going to have to beat guys off with a stick,” Ulquiorra said before he took a sip of tea from the paper cup he was holding.

 

She chuckled nervously.  “Okay, thanks. Well, there’s one more thing…  I know how much you _love_ my stage wardrobe…  Maybe you’ll want to have veto authority on that?  Most of my costuming is pre-Vega IV.”

 

Looking toward the people crowded around the food truck, Ulquiorra pursed his lips then scrunched his nose. “All that I ask is that you keep it classy, Orihime,” he finally said.

 

“Oh, they’re classy.  All of them are, in that old-Hollywood kind of way,” she reassured him as they reached the end of the line for tacos.  She looked around; there was no one they knew. She began to release the tension she was holding in her shoulders when she saw him.

 

Uryu “Weirdo” Ishida.

 

The man walked right up to the couple and stood beside Orihime.  “Fancy seeing you here. I would have thought you’d have had an UBER come to deliver your food.  You’re quite the scandal.” He was addressing both of them.

 

“What do you want, Itchy-Ishi-Iida? Whatever your name is,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Tacos, obviously,” the tall man said, pushing his glasses up his nose.  “I’m simply making friendly conversation. Certainly I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know.”

 

Orihime sighed, “Yeah, we know.”

 

Ishida nodded sharply.  “You also know that people are talking about what they saw Aizen doing during your private lessons.”

 

Orihime’s head snapped in his direction.  “What?” she asked, her voice sharper than knives.

 

Ulquiorra’s brow furrowed deeply. What the fuck were people saying? “What happened during this lesson?” He asked Ishida.

 

“I didn’t see anything,” Ishida replied, looking ahead like it was no big deal and he had just mentioned the weather.

 

“I don’t care if you didn’t see anything Ishida, what are people saying they saw?!”  Orihime ground out through clenched teeth.

 

“Oh, right,” the strange guy began, looking down at Orihime with a smug face, “Just that he’s always finding excuses to adjust your posture, _manually_ , and how he talks about how tense you are due to all this untoward attention, and how he knows just how to loosen you up. Who knows if there’s any merit to it…” he continued rambling but neither Orihime nor Ulquiorra was listening anymore.  She was humiliated and angry. Her face contorted and turned pink. How dare he! He was an authority figure! He was supposed to guide her education, not hunt for ways to corrupt her!

 

The green-eyed man’s face set into a hard expression. Ever since he had met Orihime in real life she had been plagued by these rumors. He knew they were untrue because he spent almost every free minute he had with Orihime. He wasn’t allowed to go with her to Aizen’s class even if he had a free period. “Go fuck yourself, four-eyes,” Ulquiorra muttered.

 

That stopped Ishida’s soliloquy.  “Excuse me, I’m merely making conversation.”

 

“You’re upsetting my girlfriend, you insensitive dick,” Ulquiorra stood up and glared at the man.

 

“It’s not like I even brought up the worst bit,” Ishida said in his own defense.

 

“What’s worse than that?” Orihime asked, her hand coming to her forehead.

 

“Well, like me, I’m sure most people dismiss this as petty, vicious gossip, but that Michelle girl and her roommate were drunk at Tier’s and were on a roll, talking about you two and you and Aizen and how you’re so short, that when you sit in a chair in his studio and sing warm ups, sometimes he’ll just open his fly and have you suck him off if you, you know, suck.  At singing. If you suck at singing he could easily punish you by demanding fellatio, and due to your short stature it would not be very difficult to accomplish this in his office without repositioning yourselves is what they were trying to say—“

 

“Yeah, shut up!  We get the picture, Ishida!” Orihime shouted.

 

“You know what,” Ulquiorra said stepping up to the other male. He sneered at Ishida. “I’m going to laugh when all you stupid, gossiping bitches flop on your faces.”

 

Ishida rolled his eyes.  “I am not the gossip,” he said in a haughty tone, then pivoted away.

 

Ulquiorra wasn’t going to let this drop. “I bet you’re spreading it just like you spread your legs for any man that comes around you--”

 

Ishida didn’t respond further than raising his chin and lengthening his stride as he left.

 

“Thanks,” Orihime muttered, putting a hand on Ulquiorra’s arm.

 

He wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close. “Seriously,” he bitched. Ulquiorra’s face then grew serious. “Orihime, I have to know… Has Aizen ever...”

 

“Ever what?  Be specific with your question; he’s done things that are definitely in the gray zone so I can’t answer with a blanket statement.”  There was bitterness in her voice that she couldn’t hide at the moment.

 

“Anything inappropriate? You know what I’m asking.”

 

“He has put his hands on the non-“private” parts on my body.  He looks at me inappropriately. He makes innuendo. That’s it.”

 

“When do you have to see him again?” Ulquiorra asked. His mood was irritated, bordering on irate.

 

“Tuesday.”

 

His dark head of hair nodded several times. Ulquiorra had until Tuesday to make shit happen. “I don’t care if I don’t make it in L.A. We’re getting the fuck out of this place,” he paused. “If you want.”

 

“What do you mean?” she asked, looking up at him nervously.  She had never seen him this upset about something that dealt with her. “When do you intend to leave?”

 

“I’m going to get stuff ready but I’m leaving at the end of the semester. As soon as finals are done, I’m going. ”

 

Her heart raced. “Then that’s when I’m going.”

 

***

 

Saturday. It was ten in the morning. Ulquiorra sat at his desk in his dorm room, staring at his phone. He willed it to ring. He knew it was useless, but he wanted his mother to call.

 

The phone sat there.

 

It would be up to him. Propping the phone up on his laptop Ulquiorra pressed his mother’s contact info for a video call. She answered as she was putting on makeup. It was early in California. 

 

“Well, well, well,” Maria Cifer said as she used a pink thing to dot some stuff on her face. “My son has decided to finally call me after he has people breaking down his door because of his newfound fame. What do you want Ulq?”

  
It was always all business with her. “I need help, Mom,” he said looking at the blonde, blue-eyed woman who stared back at him.

 

“You need help? Why didn’t you tell me you were Obscuras four? Do you know how embarrassing that was? I did not know my own son was a YouTube star. My label was actually thinking about scouting you.”

 

“Instead of being a ball-busting bitch, can you please listen? There’s this girl--”

 

“Great you knocked up someone.” She sighed and frowned at the camera. “Your father--”

 

“He did a fine job of raising me. I did not get anyone pregnant. Orihime wants to leave this school. She’s being harassed. People are spreading rumors about her. We spend almost every minute of the day with each other. There are people in the music department that have said unkind things about her.” Ulquiorra bit the corner of his lip, waiting for his mother to respond.

 

“What do you want me to do? Want me to fly to Ohio and spank these people for bullying and bad-mouthing your girlfriend?” Maria asked as she dotted something else on her face.

 

He should have known this wouldn’t be easy. It was damn hard. “I’m thinking about coming out there with her? Maybe we could stay with you at the Malibu house or maybe we could stay at the beach house? You could help me navigate these offers and maybe get Vega IV--”

 

“No one wants Vega IV. People want this Obscuras IV.”

 

“Okay, help me. Help Orihime. Please? I’m asking as your kid. I’m asking as your son. You know you sound bitter when I call and--”

 

“You don’t make an effort either, Ulquiorra,” Maria stopped her makeup routine and stared at her son before she resumed what she was doing. “There’s a band manager I know. Name is Sajin Komamura. Nice guy; loves dogs. He’s been in this business for a long time.”

 

“Is he going to fuck me over?”

 

“No, but I have to talk with some people to get you signed. After you show the label that you’re worthy, we could do something with Orihime. Vega IV can be your side band or whatever.” Maria sighed, “You should have told me. We could have gotten you social media managers and set you up with people.”

 

“You told me--”

 

“Do you think I want this kind of life for you? You’re a nerd, boy. I know this. I’ve seen all the pictures and the videos. I was at your graduation when the district head rattled off all those scholarships and awards. Your dad tells me everything about you in the emails he sends me,” the older woman said. She smiled at the camera. “I’ll get in touch with you in a few days. In the meantime, give your fans something new, eh? It’s been two weeks?”

 

“Yeah, it’s been about two weeks since I uploaded anything to YouTube and a week for Instagram,” he replied.

 

She nodded. “No more body shots on Instagram. No more naked couple shots. Got it?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded and disconnected the call. He sat back in the office chair and looked around then decided to text Orihime.

 

  * Called mom. She says give it a couple of days. I’ll talk to you later about it unless you’re free now? I know you’re practicing or have practice. <3



 

He sent the text off then pulled out his guitar.


	15. Introducing Pumpkin Spice

Orihime came home after rehearsal later Saturday afternoon.  She was tired. The first part was great. The quartet had really gotten their set polished up.  It was a nice feeling.  

 

She got Ulquiorra’s text and responded.

 

  * Sorry, in between rehearsal sessions, I only have about four minutes before the next one starts.  I’ll call you as soon as I’m done. Love you <3



 

After they broke for lunch she came back to rehearse with Ichigo for another hour.  It was not as much about him berating her this time; her voice had recovered from the stress she had put on it from the Vega IV show.  This time it was artistic differences. Despite only being an accompanist, Ichigo seemed to think that because he was such a wonderful pianist, his interpretation of the song was superior, and the accompaniment should lead the way instead of the singer.

  
Orihime disagreed. Unkind words were said and Ichigo stormed out.  Orihime was half tempted to go home early but she felt she was better served making sure she was on point.  That carrot-topped pompous ass wouldn’t have a leg to stand on if she was perfect. So she used a CD recording of the accompaniment and practiced without him.  He came back twenty-five minutes later and practiced with her some more. He apologized for the nasty words and they concluded the rehearsal amicably.

 

Amicably was a stretch; Orihime was still pissed off.  As she left the building she called her boyfriend.

 

“Did you check your texts before you called me?” Ulquiorra asked. He’d been recording a list of songs and decided to take a break as soon as his phone rang. “How was practice? Ivan still a bitchy diva?”

 

“Oh. My. God.  You have no clue.  He actually called _me_ a pretentious bitch and walked out of rehearsal.  He came back twenty minutes later with his tail between his legs though, so that was good.  I didn’t check my texts. Should I and then call you back?”

 

Ulquiorra chuckled. “Nope. Where are you headed? Your room? Coming here? I could meet you somewhere?” he asked. After last night when they got back from the taco truck excursion, the couple made out but Ulquiorra wasn’t feeling amorous so he left. He had needed time to think and take a breather from this entire thing. Dealing with crazy fans was one thing. Dealing with jealous rumors were another. It made him feel panicked. “Hopefully you got some sleep last night.”

 

“Yeah, eventually.  It was cold this morning though.  I would have climbed into bed with Tats but she never came home.  I could come over there if that’s where you are.”

 

“I’m in my room,” he replied. “Come on over and up. I’ll warm you up. We can watch… Shit what movie are we on? We can watch something. I can make you a cup of noodles. Gourmet stuff.”

 

“Oh, fine dining and entertainment.  Should I stop at my place for a sleepover bag?”

 

A chuckle came from the male. “I have some of your clothes in my closet. There’s underwear, no bra, a sleeping shirt? You can always borrow sweats.”

 

She considered his proposal.  “Actually, I want to stop at home and make myself pretty for you.  I look haggard. I’ll make it worth the wait.”

 

“Do I get some real-life shots from the bad habit folder?”

 

She smirked, though he couldn’t see it.  “We could do a private photo shoot in your room if you want,” she said in what she thought was a seductive voice.

 

A hiss left Ulquiorra. “Maybe,” he said, grinning like an idiot. “Uh, the idea intrigues me.”

 

“Oh, you don’t have to play coy with me, Mr. Cifer.  I’ll bring some of my newest acquisitions. Do you have any requests?”

 

Ulquiorra thought back to the pictures he had seen and pursed his lips for a second. “Ladies choice. You have so many pieces of lingerie that I can’t keep up with it,” he answered. “You know what style I like on you. Anything with lace and straps and ribbons.”

 

He sounded like a kid on Christmas Eve, she thought as she chuckled.  “Your wish is my command, Love. I’ll see you in about twenty minutes.”

 

“I’ll be here.”

 

Orihime was no longer sick, so she was able to jog the rest of the way back to her place, which was all well and good considering she hadn’t been to the gym since the whole thing with ObscurasIV’s cover being blown.  She took a quick rinse in the shower before she changed and packed a bag, then left for Ulquiorra’s place.

 

The first thing she saw when she came through the lobby was the guy with the red mohawk.  He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, but to Orihime’s surprise, he made no indication that he found her presence at all interesting.  She raised her eyebrows and smiled. Maybe things were settling down, she thought, as she waited for the elevator.

 

Three minutes later, she was knocking on Ulquiorra’s door.

 

Ulquiorra had taken a shower and cleaned up his area well before Orihime got there. He answered the door, peeking his head around the wooden barrier. He was practically naked save for the green boxer-briefs he had on. “Can I help you?” he asked, raising an eyebrow

 

“I think you can,” she said, a wicked grin on her face as she lifted her overnight bag and dangled it in front of his face.  “Let me in.”

 

Giving her a straight face, Ulquiorra pulled Orihime into the room by her arm and shut the door, locking it behind him. “Any trouble today? No Nel?”

 

She shook her head, still smiling.  “Nope. Nothing to bother me here,” she said, stepping out of her shoes and taking off her jacket.  Her eyes never left his for a second.

 

As soon as she made herself comfortable, Ulquiorra pounced. He grabbed the short woman and kissed her, tilting her face up to his. He knew that he didn’t have to do much and that Orihime would respond to him. His desire ran deep for her. He had his hands on her waist and then on her hips, bringing her closer to him. “You do look pretty for me,” he breathed against the front of her neck.

 

“Thanks for noticing,” she replied, her voice somewhat husky.  “These are nice,” she added, her fingertips finding the waistband of his boxers and dipping inside.  “Do you have something for me in here?”

 

Orihime was silly but the dark-haired male loved it. It was her little quirks and eccentricities that made him smile and fall in love with her more. “Maybe; I was thinking of treating you to something since you’ve had a shitty week,” Ulquiorra said,stepping back from her.

 

She found his eyes with her own and shook her head, a low whistle passing through her lips as her eyes traveled down his body and back up.  “I do like treats. What is it?”

 

It would have been fine had she not asked what it was but since she did, his face turned red. “Um, well, I know you don’t come every time we have sex and when you do, it leaves me brain dead for half a day because--Hnnngh, wow. I want to get you off.”

 

She grinned at that, her face coloring slightly as she looked down quickly and back up to his face.  Damn he was cute. She fought the urge to go squish his cheeks and answered. “Like I said, your wish is my command.”

 

“Take off the clothes, leave the undies on,” Ulquiorra said as he sat down at his desk.

 

She nodded and started to undress, carefully folding each item and setting it on Szayel’s perfectly made, never used bed.

 

He wasn’t sure how Orihime was going to react to this. She never talked about Mr. Brazil or whatever his name was because Ulquiorra would get growly. As soon as she was stripped down to her underwear, Ulquiorra stood and led her the few steps over to his bed and made Orihime sit.

 

She was slightly nervous; not in a frightened way, but in a suspenseful way.  She had no idea what he was planning. Usually, Ulquiorra was a pretty straightforward guy when it came to sexual activities so this was uncharted territory.

 

“So, have you ever had someone go down on you?” he asked. His words were rushed.

 

She smiled through pressed lips and shook her head no. Mr. Brazil had not been that adventurous.

 

Ulquiorra had been right. He mentally high-fived himself. Selfish Mr. Brazil. He kept a somewhat passive expression on his face as he delivered his next question. “May I? If it’s too weird or awkward, I can just use my fingers but--” he stopped, feeling his face getting hotter.

 

Oh hell no.  If he was offering, she was taking.  “Uh, you may. You definitely may,” she said, inwardly cringing at her own eagerness.  “What should I do?”

 

Silence followed her question for a long moment. “Oh, um, sit back a little,” Ulquiorra instructed. He slowly knelt down at the side of the bed with her legs on either side of his body. He smiled and took in how her skin looked with the dark maroon color of the bra and panties she had on. It was lacy and showed just enough skin for him to be curious as to what she was hiding underneath it.

 

Of course, Ulquiorra already knew. He’d seen her naked body a lot. He knew Orihime didn’t have any freckles on her body. She kept herself well groomed. He brought his hands up to do as she did earlier to him. The difference being that he brought his hands up to her tits and ran one finger under the the edge of the bra cup. “This new?” he questioned, toying with the strap for a moment before cupping the delicate material.

 

“Yes, relatively.  I’ve only ever tried it on before,” came her reply.  

 

He nodded slowly. “It looks good on you,” Ulquiorra commented. A confused expression came over his face. “Uh, how do I take it off?”

 

“There are about six hooks in the back,” she said, somewhat apologetic.  “Think you can take them on?”

 

Pffft, six hooks were nothing. He reached behind her and fumbled with the fastenings. “This is... Oh god... Wait, did I snag? No, I did not snag it.” After fighting with it for several more seconds, the bra came off with little fuss. Being a gentleman, Ulquiorra tossed it onto the bed behind him. He smiled at Orihime.

 

“Impressive,” she said, meaning it. “The underwear just come off like normal,” she advised, smiling at him.  He looked proud of himself and she was loving it.

 

“I’m not even ready for that,” he said before he stretched his body up to kiss her, his lips playing over hers in a tender manner. “Have to build up to things. I won’t be satisfied unless you are. I want you turned on for this.”

 

She shook her head, “You think I’m not turned on?  Ha. I mean sure, you could wind me up tighter but I assure you, I’m turned on.”  Her voice was warm and relaxed.  

 

Ulquiorra smiled before he put his lips back on her neck. “Okay the truth is, I want to ruin you. I want to make this unforgettable so that you will never forget what I did to you.”

 

A bashful grin took over her face and then she bit her lip.  “I’m intrigued now,” she uttered, sounding as shy as she looked.

 

“I’m sure you are,” he replied, as he steadily moved down to her tits. Ulquiorra was quite familiar with this part of her body. He liked kissing them and pinching the nipples to make her gasp. He would nuzzle them with his nose and then try to smother himself by pressing his face into the soft skin. It was nice being with someone who wasn’t obsessed with her body. Kissing each nipple, Ulquiorra reached up and pressed on Orihime’s shoulder, indicating she should lie back further.

 

She yielded to his hands, and as her back hit then bed, she craned her neck to the side and down so she could watch what he was doing.  She enjoyed alternating between the visual and sensual aspects of these types of activities, and to her there was nothing sweeter than the sight of Ulquiorra’s mouth on her body.  She let out a growly hum as a surge of passion swept through her. He was truly the center of her universe these days, and she was becoming more and more comfortable with this fact with each teasing kiss.

 

He smirked as he heard the sound she made. Ulquiorra nipped at her stomach before letting his tongue trail down her body. He kept his eyes focused on her, watching every facial expression and reaction she had. “Hnnngh,” he said as his mouth hit her hip bone which was covered in lace, satin and ribbons.

 

“How does this bad habit rate?” she breathed the question as her pelvis rose slightly.

 

“The color is fantastic on you. I’m going to have dock points for the fastenings. The ribbon is a nice touch,” Ulquiorra commented as he ran a finger under the edge of the lace. “I give it a solid, solid eight out of ten.”

 

“Hmm, wonder what would rate a ten,” she said, sighing as his finger slid below the fabric.

 

He laughed, allowing the noise to taper to a chuckle. “You’ll find out soon… Hopefully.” Ulquiorra busied himself with slowly peeling off the maroon lace from his girlfriend’s hips, letting his mouth trail down one thigh to her knee. He gently bit the skin just above her kneecap. “How is it so far?”

 

She whined in response.  “Good… Better than good. Have you been using chapstick?” she asked, raising the opposite knee and lowering it, anxious to alleviate the mounting tension between her legs.  Her breathing was becoming shallower as he continued to pull the panties off of her.

 

Once the piece of clothing was free of her ankles, Ulquiorra, once again, threw them behind him, not caring if they landed on Szayel’s pillow. He switched sides, kissing his way up the other thigh, amused at her behavior. She was in for a real treat. “Spread your legs, bring your knees up,” he murmured.

 

She did as directed, only mildly self-conscious that she was so exposed to him, and glad she had taken a shower before coming over here.  “This good?” she asked, holding her knees in each palm out to the sides of each hip.

 

Ulquiorra nodded as he brought his fingers up, stroking her inner thighs, up one side and then the other. He wanted her trembling before he actually touched in between those smooth legs. “It’s very good from my perspective,” he murmured, glancing up at her.

 

Her thighs were already reactive; with each graze of his nails her knees tried to come together.  Her pink skin was turning into a deeply saturated shade of rose, and its slickness shone in the ambient light from his desk lamp.

 

More and more kisses and nibbles to her belly and inner thighs, his hands sliding up and down the length of her calves, one finding its way back up her body to grasp her left breast firmly, and then she was squirming.  If he looked, he would see her entrance winking at him, that’s how much he had wound her up.

 

Ulquiorra slowly trailed his fingers down her slit before he entered her body with two of them. The sharp whimper that came from her mouth made him bite his lip. His breathing intensified as he began to move his fingers in and out of Orihime’s body. “This looks so good. I almost want to stop and fuck you,” he said, eyes trained on her face.

 

“Anything, please, just make me come,” She nearly cried.  She was already desperate for release and he had just gotten started.  The feel of his knuckles passing back and forth over her entrance was making her wetter by the second.  She whined again.

 

One side of his mouth pulled up and he lowered his face to her nether lips, kissing the skin. That smell he loved was stronger here, Ulquiorra gave her mound another kiss, letting Orihime get used to this. She was barely hanging on, he could tell. An idle thought rolled through his brain. “Wonder how many times I could get you close to an orgasm and then back off,” he said.

 

She whimpered, “you wouldn’t, would you?”

 

“I might,” he replied. His tongue snaked out diving between the folds of skin, lapping at her, taking an experimental taste of Orihime. The sound she made echoed in his ears. The wetness that coated his fingers also bathed her flesh. He closed his eyes, enjoying what he was doing.

 

“Oh my god,” she squeaked, pulling her knees almost up to her chest just to give herself something to hold onto.  Every swipe of his tongue caused her toes to curl and her core to swallow. His tongue felt so different; so much hotter and wetter than anything else she had experienced down there.  She kept whimpering through her nose, sounding like she was in agony.

 

Ulquiorra opened his eyes, gazing at Orihime. It seemed like she was really enjoying this so far. That was a good thing because he was going to kick it up another notch. His fingers had stilled once his mouth was on her clit. He figured the sensation would be too much for her to handle as this was her first time doing something like this. If she wanted to come, he was definitely going to bring her to that point of pleasure. Curling the two fingers that sat inside of her slightly, Ulquiorra pressed upward before he started moving them again.

 

She shrieked.  Her hands flew into his hair and she bent her fingertips into his scalp and then chanted his name in a harsh whisper.  She wasn’t going to last long if he kept this up. She could feel her insides tense up on him, winding tighter and tighter; tighter than she thought she could go. She opened her eyes, noticing that her vision was dimmer than usual; darkness licked around the edges. She had to remember to breathe or she would pass out before she got to the good part.

 

That’s what he wanted to hear as he licked her. He wanted to feel her lose control and he wanted to be the one to make her do it. He kept increased his pace, his tongue flicking against her clit rapidly. “Mmmm,” he hummed as his mouth closed around the sensitive bundle of nerves.

 

The utterances falling from her lips lost all meaning as her walls trapped his fingers where they were and she panted vocally, crying out as she came. Her knees rose and fell as she fought the overwhelming sensation; the burning, hot electric sting that shot from her core to her brain and back down to her toes.  Then her voice stopped. All she could do was bite her lip and bear down and ride out the continuing sensation, gasping a quick breath every five to ten seconds to stay conscious, otherwise holding her breath.

 

He backed off and eventually brought his head up. Orihime looked absolutely wrecked. “Are you okay? Did I kill you?”

 

A soft huff was his only response, as she slowly, carefully, lowered her shaking legs.  She breathed heavily, a hand resting on her forehead as she waited for her vision to clear and for the sound of blood rushing in her ears to subside.  She felt short of breath, and it took minutes before she felt able to speak.

 

“I…  I will definitely never forget that, Ulquiorra.  I think I saw God.”

 

Ulquiorra chuckled again. Standing up, he peeled off his boxer-briefs and then pushed her legs up. “Good, now it’s my turn.”

 

***

 

Orihime awoke with a start the next morning.  She had been handling the possibility of a move across the country with a fair amount of grace. It would be stressful to find a new school and set up a life in a new place, but she had just done it here.  It wouldn’t be the worst thing ever.

 

The thing that gave her anxiety; the thing that she had been stuffing deep into a box in the back of her mind was Aunt Claire.  She had called in some personal favors to get Orihime a place with Doctor Aizen at OSU. The retired soprano held the vocal professor in high regard, and was very proud that Orihime was his prize student.

 

She would have to tell her why she was leaving.  She knew what would happen. She closed her eyes and rolled into Ulquiorra’s side.  He was still sleeping soundly. She took a deep breath with her nose to his skin, as her thoughts drifted back to the events of five years ago.  She had had a handsy vocal coach then. He hadn’t been the first, either. Aunt Claire had called her a liar when she told her what had been going on.  She had called her an ungrateful, precocious child who charmed these older men and then tried tattling on them later. It was her fault that they wanted to touch her; she shouldn’t be so charming if she didn’t want the attention.

 

She sighed.  She was sure it would be even worse now.  She had sent an email off to the bank that was co-trustee to her trust.  They confirmed that she wouldn’t have control of her funds until she was twenty-two.  She would have access to five-hundred dollars per month for living expenses above and beyond education expenses.  Most of that money had gone toward her car payment, insurance and her cell phone bill. After that was accounted for there was not much left for pocket money.

 

She was going to have to get very lucky for Aunt Claire to support her decision to move.  She considered writing a letter. Yes, if it was in writing it might be easier. She didn’t have her computer here so she grabbed her phone and started a rough draft, just to get her ideas down.

 

There were texts from Ulquiorra that were unread from the day before.  Oops. They had been so preoccupied with their physical pursuits that that by the time they were done they had both been pretty much brain dead. They had fallen asleep watching The Order of the Phoenix and never got around to reading them.  She tapped on the message and read.

 

  * Ugh



 

  * I can’t believe I asked her for help.



 

Not much for new information, but clearly Ulquiorra wasn’t especially pleased to have spoken with his mother.  She worried that it didn’t go well, and as she watched him sleep, questions kept piling up in her mind.

 

She checked the time in her phone.  “Time to wake up,” she called to him in a whisper, brushing some hair away from his forehead.

 

Ulquiorra grabbed Orihime by the waist and pulled her on top of him. “Mmmm, no,” he mumbled mostly still asleep. “Time is it?”

 

“Almost nine-thirty,” she answered and placed a kiss on his throat.

 

His eyes flew open. “What? Wait what day is it?” Ulquiorra had been having pleasant dreams of a certain redhead with a very nice body. Last night had been awesome and he’d lost brain function after coming twice inside of her.

 

“It’s Sunday, don’t worry.  It’s just I don’t want the day to get away from us and you still never told me how things went with your mom.”

 

“Oh,” he said relaxing a bit. “Uh, can we do this after coffee?” Ulquiorra glanced at her after he rubbed his eyes.

 

“Yeah.  Do you want to go out or what?” she asked, stretching her neck.

 

Ulquiorra pecked her lips before rolling to the side, dumping Orihime onto the bed. “I have instant coffee somewhere. I’ve never had to use it—“ he was interrupted by his phone ringing. He found the device and saw it was his father. He put it on speaker. “Hi Dad.”

 

“There is my celebrity child. I saw you and—Steve, what is her name?” There was mumbling. “You and Miss Vega’s performance on YouTube.”

 

“Her name is Orihime.” Ulquiorra looked at the woman and smiled. “Do you need something?”

 

More mumbling. “Uh,” Jon Cifer said. “I want to invite you and Vega to a Thanksgiving cocktail party where you two will be providing entertainment.”

 

“What?”

 

“I want that sultry-voiced vixen to serenade people at a Thanksgiving party I’m throwing,” his father said.

 

Orihime covered her mouth and chuckled through her nose at that.  She had an amused look on her face as she shrugged and nodded.

 

“You can talk you know,” Ulquiorra mumbled. “Sure Dad, Orihime says we’ll do it. Are you gonna pay us?”

 

“Of course I am,” came a different voice. Steve had the phone now. “How does three hundred sound for three hours?”

 

“Like you’re trying to be cheap and lowball me,” Ulquiorra said.

 

Orihime scoffed.  “It takes into account the friends and family discount, right?”  Her question was directed to the speaker on the phone.

 

“Who is that?” Steve barked. It made Ulquiorra roll his eyes. His dad’s boyfriend was such a diva.

 

“Steve this is Vega Highwell, or as I know her, Orihime Inoue,” he said. Ulquiorra looked at Orihime then kissed her, a small smile blooming on his face. “If she’s okay with that price, we’ll do it.”

 

“Great, because even if you don’t want to do it, I’ll offer her to do it for that price. Tch,” the whiny man scoffed. “It’s going to be so magical and inviting--”

 

“You’re going to get drunk and start fights with Grandmother.”

 

“Ulquiorra Murcielago Cifer!” Steve scolded.

 

“Steve!”

 

“Boys!” Orihime admonished sweetly.  “Let’s talk about this party. What’s the vibe going to be like?  Any requests? Genre specifications? This is going to be fun!”

 

“Knowing Steven, it’ll be basic bitch pumpkin spice--”

 

“How dare you call me a--”

 

There were some muffled complaints and some rasping against the phone. “Hi, sorry, Steve hasn’t had coffee yet. Um, we’re having a very late autumn aesthetic; candles, warm sweaters; cider and yes, pumpkins,” Jon Cifer said.

 

Ulquiorra had to stifle a laugh. “Are we having Thanksgiving this year or is Steven just trying to be hip and cool since he’s now over forty?”

 

“Ulquiorra.” 

 

The name was sharp enough that the green eyed male took notice. He sighed. “Sorry. He started it.”

 

“It’s fine. I did not raise a child that did not have manners. I know you don’t like him at times but he’s still a part of my family,” his father scolded. “Now, there will mostly be late thirties to mid-sixties aged people at this party, so I’ll leave that up to you… Orihime, is it?”

 

“That’s right, most people don’t get it on the first try!” Orihime replied, trying to be charming; trying to sound like it was no big deal and not the first time she ever spoke to her boyfriend’s father. 

 

“Is she the same Vega you talked about--”

 

“Okay, Dad; nice chat; losing signal. Bye,” Ulquiorra said in a rushed breath, ending the call.

 

“What was that for?” Orihime asked, looking at Ulquiorra with a quirked brow.  It sounded like he was trying to stop his father from saying something that might embarrass him.

 

He remained straight faced as he shook his head. “It was for nothing,” Ulquiorra said. 

 

“Oh come _on._ Who are you trying to kid?  You were trying to shut him up.  What were you afraid he would say?” she pressed.

 

“I used to talk about you a lot to him,” Ulquiorra confessed, his face turning a bright red.

 

Her face brightened. “Oh yeah?  What did you tell him about me?”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. There was no way that information was coming out of him. “Nope. Ask my dad or Steve,” he replied. “In person.”

 

“You think they would rat you out?  I doubt it. Come on,” she pressed harder, batting her eyelashes, pushing her breasts into him, and drawing a small circle on his chest.  “Just tell me a little?”

 

“No.” He clamped his mouth shut and folded his arms over his chest.

 

“Pretty please?” she asked, her hand snaking under the covers and down to the base of his cock, resting on top of it.  “I can make it worth your while…” she added, sweetening the deal.

 

Ulquiorra sat up and threw the covers off of himself. “No, and I don’t do sexual bribes. That’s something that--It’s something Nel would do,” he said before getting out of bed completely naked. He never went to bed naked. He shook his head as he walked over to his closet. “Look, it’s embarrassing. Not like oh baby pictures embarrassing… like creepy embarrassing.”

 

“What do you mean, creepy embarrassing?” she asked, furrowing her brows.  She was mildly offended now.

 

“I used to speculate whether or not you were female or male and what you looked like. I would read my dad your comments when Nel wasn’t around and ask how old you sounded like. When you first started commenting that’s all I talked about. Steve would mock me. Vega this. Vega that. It’s embarrassing.”

 

“It is not!  I mean, I knew you were male, obviously, from the videos.  I could guess that you were under thirty. That was about it.  I wondered a lot about you. A _lot._ I didn’t have anyone to talk to about it, so sometimes I would go into fanpages and talk about you. That was never a good thing.  You have some really, really territorial fans. I was never weird like that, but, I mean, I often worried that I was commenting too much because you might think I was stalking you.  Come back here. Please.”

 

Standing there for a moment, Ulquiorra looked at her. “I know. Some of them would gang up on people who didn’t like my sound. Now they all want to hang off of me.” He shuffled back to the bed and sat down. 

 

“I want to hang off of you.  Not all the time… But you know what I mean,” she said, smiling and giving him a hug from behind.  Anyway, where is the coffee? You have a seat. I’ll make it. It’s the least I can do after what you did last night.”

 

“Doing that was no big deal,” he mumbled, his face turning redder. “There’s a box of coffee packets in one of the cupboards over there,” Ulquiorra stated with a wave of his hand.

 

She got up and crossed the room stark naked without a visible trace of self-consciousness.  Approaching the cupboards in question, the diminutive woman stretched up on tiptoe to reach into the canister that held packets of instant coffee. Her fingertips barely reached, and she had to resort to jumping to be able to grasp the square-shaped clear acrylic container.  A voiceless “Yes,” accompanied her success, and she spun around as her heels returned to the floor, then crossed the room again to gather some mugs to heat water.

 

“These are fine as-is, right?  You don’t need any additions or anything?” she asked, filling the mugs with water.

 

A slight smile crossed his face as he watched her. He reminded himself to buy a step stool for her; one that folded up for easy storage. “It’s fine. Just hot water and a packet or two depending on how strong you want it,” Ulquiorra replied. 

 

“Okay,” she said, taking out a couple packets from the container. “Do you usually just have one?”

 

“One is fine. Really. I only use two when it’s Monday,” he replied, still watching her.

 

She nodded and put a third packet back into the container and returned to the cupboard to return it to its place, standing on tiptoe again, stretching up and raising one foot to balance.  She got the container back into position with her fingertips and shut the cupboard with a pleased sigh and then waited at the microwave, drumming her fingers as she waited for the dinging noise that would announce that the water was heated.   As she waited she looked up and saw Ulquiorra watching her. Her cheeks colored. “What?”

 

He said nothing for a few seconds. Damn, he’d gotten caught. “Nothing, I’m looking at a beautiful woman making herself at home.”

 

She smiled and blushed harder.  It was true; she was making herself at home.  They had fallen into a comfortable companionship in real life much like they had online, only sexier. “Did you ever in your wildest dreams ever think that we would actually be doing something like this in real life one day?” she asked after taking the mugs out of the microwave three seconds early.

 

Ulquiorra declined to tell the truth in this case. He had thought about this but Vega at that point was just a mannequin with a name written across the forehead. She wasn’t real or tangible at that point. After the whole thing where she ignored him for Mr. Brazil, he had stopped having thoughts like that. It felt like he had gotten his hopes up for nothing. “A couple of times,” he replied.

 

“Not me. I never imagined I would be that lucky.  I mean, I fantasized about it, but that’s not the same thing.”  She poured the contents of the packets into the mugs, gave each a stir and returned to Ulquiorra’s bed.  “The real thing is better than I imagined, though.”

 

“How?” he asked reaching for one of the mugs. Once it was in his hands, he took a drink then sighed. “Coffee.”

 

She hummed a chuckle.  “How? Lots and lots of little ways.  For starters, you’re much better looking than I thought you’d be.  Part of me thought maybe you hid your face because you had something to hide.  I fantasized that maybe you had some gruesome scars and that I’d be the only woman who could see beyond them into your heart; I guess that was my Quasimodo fantasy.  Oh, or that I’d meet you and you’d be like, ‘yeah! Let’s get drunk and screw!’ and then you’d leave me pregnant and destitute; that was my sad groupie fantasy. And then there was the one where you took one look at me and were like, uh, no thanks,” she said, a small laugh coming through her nostrils as she took a sip of her coffee. “This is better than I thought it would be.”  

 

His brow furrowed deeply as he listened to her. How could she think like that? “Uh, no. No. Finally no. I’d never be that shallow and,” he said matter-of-factly, “Had we met sooner there probably would have been a year or two before we had sex.”

 

“Yeah?  Well, you never know.  I’m glad we met when we did.  It seemed like a perfect storm.”  She lifted her face and looked into his eyes for a long minute.  “I really do love you, you know? It’s not just a crush or lust or like, an unhealthy attachment.  I know we’re really young, but I feel like we have an old relationship.”

 

“I love you too. I’m glad that we’re sure about that; sure about each other.” Ulquiorra gave her a brief smile. “So what do you want to do today? Hang out? Study? Finish homework?”

 

“Finish homework early then hang out.  We could go somewhere, if you want. Like I don’t know… Go to a movie or window shop.”

 

Ulquiorra drank about half of his coffee before he answered the redhead. “No movies. They leave a bad taste in my mouth. With Nel it was always a trip to the cinema and then her trying to get into my pants. We could go for a walk or a run? Want to go to a different part of the city?”

 

“Oh yeah!  Maybe we can find some kind of nature trail somewhere and walk-slash-run.  It would be great to find somewhere quiet. The leaves are starting to look awesome anyway,” she answered, starting to warm up to the idea.

 

He smiled. “I mean the only other place I have to go today is the store because I’m out of stuff. I mean it could wait until next Friday when I only have one class but things need to be cleaned.”

 

“What do you need to get?  We could swing by somewhere on the way back and finish getting whatever you need.”

 

Grabbing his phone Ulquiorra tapped on the folder that was called OCD. He brought up his shopping list. “Uh, cleaning wipes, laundry detergent, fabric softener, paper towels, maybe some more baby wipes and those noodle cups.”

 

“Those things are really bad for you, you know.  Delicious. But bad for you. So is fabric softener.  VOCs or something like that, I don’t know. One of Aunt Claire’s girlfriends was always harping about it.”

 

“Your Aunt Claire is a lesbian? I knew it,” Ulquiorra said with a laugh. “Anyway, she can go get fucked. I like how it smells and I do enough healthy stuff to counteract the one thing of noodles I eat a week.”

 

“Ha!  She couldn’t get fucked if the ghost of Pavarotti himself bent her over.  I don’t even want to imagine,” she paused to shiver and made a disgusted noise.  “She’s my mom’s much older sister. My mom got the looks in the family.”

 

Ulquiorra leaned over and put his head on Orihime’s shoulder. “Want to see a picture of my mom and dad?” he asked.

 

She turned her eyes toward him.  “Yeah! I’m really curious, actually.”

 

He closed the grocery list app and then tapped on his photos. He scrolled through the photos on his phone and then said, “I’m going to show you my mom first.”

 

“Okay,” she said, grinning.  “How old is she?”

 

“Mid-forties… She had me when she was young”

 

“Not that young... Wait, how old are you?”

 

“I’ll turn nineteen on December first,” he replied.

 

She did the math in her head.  “So she had you in her early mid-twenties?  Sounds about normal.”

  
Ulquiorra shrugged. His mother always said that she had been too young to handle having a child. The green-eyed man took that to mean she had just been too young. “My dad is a lot older than her. He’s in his early fifties.”

 

“Robbing the cradle, Mr. Cifer?  I suppose you could say the same about me, though,” she said off-handedly as he found a picture and brought it up to show her.  “Holy shit… she’s beautiful.”

 

His eyebrow quirked up as he listened to Orihime. His mother looked like a plain jane; she was one of those types you’d find in Los Angeles. Maria had blonde hair. She had blue eyes. She had perfect teeth and a tan. “My dad said that when she smiled, she lit up his world,” he stated before swiping to the next picture. It showed a man who did not look like he was in his fifties. It looked like an older version of Ulquiorra with short hair and a warmer complexion.

 

“Um… Ulquiorra… We might have a problem.  I think… I think I might have a wee crush on your dad,” she teased.

 

“He’s gay so you’re going to have to fight Steve to the death for him,” Ulquiorra deadpanned.

 

“I’ve had gay boyfriends before… I mean it’s not an insurmountable task,” she continued, an evil grin stretching her cheeks.  “But what of this Steve? Got any pictures of him?”

 

He nodded and then swiped to last year’s christmas photo. It showed Ulquiorra standing behind his father with his arms crossed and a guy who looked like he was an overaged Abercrombie model sitting in Jon’s lap. “My dad told me to look annoyed as possible. I told him that would not be that hard to do. Steve just turned forty.”

 

Orihime’s grin gentled and she wrapped an arm around Ulquiorra’s waist and kissed his shoulder.  “That is adorable. They seem really in love. And you are precious. Look at you, all growly and angsty.”

 

With a roll of his eyes, Ulquiorra took his phone back and closed everything. “It wasn’t hard to do. Steven annoyed me before I even had a chance to say anything that morning when the picture was taken. He wanted to do matching outfits or Christmas sweaters. I threw a fit. He threw a fit. My dad had to make a compromise.”

 

“Which was?” she prompted.

 

“Steve sitting on his lap and them shoving their relationship into my Grandmother and my Mom’s faces. Granny doesn’t like Steve. My mom doesn’t like him. He’s bitchy and immature.” Ulquiorra shook his head. “Steve sent one to both of them and plastered it on social media sites.”

 

“That’s kind of… Confrontational.  I mean, I don’t know. I don’t know much about family dynamics.  It’s always just been me and the old bird. It was her way or the highway at all times.  She had no one to contradict her, ever. The only time I rebelled was after I discovered boys and then I just kind of ignored her.  I didn’t really rub her face in it.”

 

Ulquiorra kissed her. “I’m just asking you not to make jokes like that about my dad unless you want Steve bitching at you. He can be very critical of people at times.”


	16. You Are My Style

Tuesday after class found Orihime in her room, pulling out a series of long satin gowns, some with deep V-necks and others with straight-across strapless necklines, all with some kind of thigh high slit in the front of one leg.  Ulquiorra sat on her bed as she held them in front of herself, trying to get his approval on at least one of the costumes.

 

He had skipped his electronic music class. Orihime’s class would have finished before it was over, so he decided not to go. It was boring shit anyway. He looked at her as she held another one up. “No,” he said with a shake of his head. “Don’t you have anything that has a decent neckline? Isn’t this like a classy concert?”

 

“No, this is a corporate function with a jazz combo set up in the corner.  I’m supposed to be sultry. Eye candy. Jessica Rabbit. It’s the genre. I mean, they look better on…” she tried to sound convincing.

 

Right. He’d gotten the things confused. Tonight was her lounge show gig. Later on this month was the concert class or whatever Aizen-fuckface called it. “You’re my eye candy, no one else's,” Ulquiorra stated with a pout. “I just wish you didn’t have to bare the goods to be taken seriously.”

 

She sighed.  It really was sweet that he wanted to keep her to himself but it was beginning to become a problem.  “You have become awfully possessive.” It was a comment, not an accusation or complaint. “But let me show you how it looks on.  It’s not as bad as you think, trust me.” She unhooked the top of the golden mermaid dress and undid the short zipper - this one had an open back and a modest V-neck.

 

It sounded like a complaint to him. It sounded like she was annoyed with him. Ulquiorra set his jaw and then stood up. “Wear whatever you want. I’m not going to be there. I have shit to do,” he replied.

 

“Oh come on, Ulquiorra.  Don’t be like that, please?  I like that you want to keep me to yourself.  I just… I want to perform. I like performing.  I like wearing a pretty dress.”

 

“It sounds like you’re complaining about me being “possessive”. It sounds like that annoys you. If I’m being too much just fucking say so. I’m sorry that I don’t like other men looking at you.”

 

Her eyes started to water and her cheeks were heating up.  Why was this happening? Why now? “Don’t you trust me?”

 

He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “I trust you. I do not trust other people. You know this,” Ulquiorra replied. “I just--It frustrates me that you cannot get by on your talent alone. People are spreading rumors about you. I’m sure you came to this school by your own merit.”

 

“Kinda,” she mumbled, tossing the dress in a heap onto Tatsuki’s bed.  She bit the inside of her cheek and shook her head. It wouldn’t do to explain to him what Aunt Claire had done to ensure her placement in Dr. Aizen’s studio, not that she knew the details anyway.  It didn’t matter. She had to deal with figuring out what to wear to this gig that she no longer had any desire to do.

 

Sitting back down on Orihime’s bed, Ulquiorra looked up at her. “You were going to show me what it looks like, weren’t you?” he asked. When she didn’t answer right away, he sighed. “Orihime, I’ve never had a real girlfriend. Even  _ dating  _ Nel, I didn’t give a shit what she did as long as she left me alone. I can’t find a middle ground with things. You either have my attention or you don’t. I hate having to share you with everyone else; Ivan and your other bandmates included.”

 

“Keigo and Miz are harmless nerds.  Sweet and innocent little instrumentalists.  Ichigo is so far up his own ass that he doesn’t notice anyone else.  I’m barely on their radars,” she muttered, pushing through garments on hangers.

 

“Stop. Do you like the gold dress?” he inquired. So far it looked the most modest one out of the bunch. “Put yourself in my shoes, okay? If I went out with no t-shirt on and some tight ass jeans, you wouldn’t like that would you?”

 

She gave him a withering look.  “Put myself in your shoes? You’re the one who gets solicited every three seconds on social media. You have women and men begging you for sex all day long.  I know it’s part of the life.”

 

“Yes it is, but the difference is I don’t have to be charming to those people,” Ulquiorra said. “You have to smile and nod and pay attention to these people because that’s your job. You’re the only one I’ve ever given a personal reply to and you know this.”

 

Actually, she didn’t.  “Really? Ever?” She was surprised. As she thought about it she realized it felt gratifying.  “Thank you.” she said, her expression one of mild confusion.

 

Again, he stood, this time walking over to where she was. Ulquiorra put his hands on her hips and pulled her close to him. “You’re the only one who I wrote out personal comments, messages and replies to. You never got just an emoji or just a thanks,” he said, letting his hands trail up her sides. “Try on the gold dress. I like it. It’s you.”

 

She took a little bracing breath, raising and dropping her shoulders, and let the negativity that had been swirling around her fall away.  Nodding, she turned to Tatsuki’s bed and picked up the dress. She stepped into it, taking her bra off before putting her arms through the straps.  There was padding and sequins on the front so a bra was really not a necessity anyway. She got the lower back zipped up and then pulled her hair up.  “Could you get the hook back here?” she asked him about the clasp at the base of her neck.

 

He nodded. Ulquiorra wanted to ravish her but he knew she had time constraints to adhere to. He wanted to put a huge hickey on the side of her neck. She would probably kill him if he did that though. Willing himself to behave, the dark-haired musician did as his girlfriend asked and calmly did the clasp. It was only then he turned her around, giving her a deep kiss. “I like it. It suits you.”

 

“Really?  I don’t look like I’m ‘showing off the goods’, as you put it?”

 

Letting his hand trail up her neck, the male searched the short woman’s face. Ulquiorra was going to have to step back or he was going to have his way with her and make her late, so he did. His gaze started at her neck and then traveled down her body until it hit the material slightly pooled on the floor. “It’s rather more modest than some of the others. It’s classy though.”

 

“See?  I told you they look better on.  On the hangers there is nothing to hold them up,” she said, cupping the sides of her breasts and giggling.  “Okay, I gotta get back out of this and put it in a to-go bag and then do hair and make-up. Think you can get this thing back on a hanger for me?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded and undid the hook before drawing down the zipper. He helped her slip out of it and as soon as the dress was free, he threw it into Orihime’s bed. “Orihime,” he said, glancing at her with a hungry look.

 

“Yes, Ulquiorra?”  She knew that look.  She glanced at the clock on her microwave.  They had time for a quick one if that’s what he wanted.  She was almost always up for it. She wasn’t going to tell him that, though.  She liked that they still put a bit of effort into seducing one another, as little as it may be.

 

He brought his hand up to cup her face. They had been intimate for a while. He knew what she liked in bed. There was one thing he liked but never asked for because Orihime was a singer. He still couldn’t bring himself to ask for it from her. Damn Nel and her oral skills; he would have been fine not knowing what sex was all together. Maybe. Possibly. “You’re going to do great tonight. You’ll look wonderful and charm people. You’re going to get more gigs tonight. I’m sad that I’m not gonna be there.”

 

“Why aren’t you coming?  You said you were going to be my personal security.  I don’t think Miz could do more than take people out at the knees.  Keigo is an idiot and Kurosaki is too busy making love to his own reflection,” she laughed.  Was he really serious about not wanting to come before? She’d be disappointed.

 

“I figured you wouldn’t want me there. I don’t want to cramp your style.”

 

“Psssht.  Newsflash, you  _ are _ my style.”  She rose on her toes to kiss him.  “Besides, I’m not there to make friends or build a clientele, remember?  We’re supposed to be ditching this town, possibly. No need to kiss ass.”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. “Doesn’t mean that you can’t pick up jobs and do something you love,” he replied, stepping away from her and turning to the dress which he quickly hung up. He held out the article of clothing to her.

 

She took it and smirked.  “I know.” She turned back to Tatsuki’s bed where she had a garment bag laid out.  “But I have an actual job to do tonight. I don’t schmooze as much as you seem to imagine.  I find it leads me to, um… unfortunate circumstances. I try to keep my distance from audiences and clients.”

 

Did he want to know? Did he want her to elaborate? Ulquiorra peered at her. “What happened?” he asked.

 

“Um, well… It seems like some people think that when they pay you for a chunk of time that means that you should do whatever they want during that time.  That includes ridiculous song requests, light cleaning, babysitting, and sexual favors. I’ve had to walk out before getting paid a couple of times. That’s when I started demanding a deposit up front, after the second time. Other times, it wasn’t the client, but someone at the gig.  If I got too congenial they take it as flirting. I know I’m young and not ugly. These older men get flattered by attention that is only professional. It leads to awkward refusals of inappropriate propositions. I refuse to talk to anyone without a band member present now. They will often still proposition me right in front of someone.  Sometimes they are not kind at my refusals. It is easier if I have someone else on my side.”

 

He nodded, it made sense and wasn’t as bad as he thought it was. “So you want me to be there,” Ulquiorra commented. He wanted to make sure she wasn’t mad or annoyed at him.

 

“Of course I do.  I wouldn’t have invited you if I didn’t want you there.  You’re my favorite person,” she said, smiling, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.  “Besides, I plan on making it worth your while, so… Don’t make me spoil the surprise.”

 

A smirk played over Ulquiorra’s face and he kissed the redhead again. “Fine. I’m going to let you get dressed. I’m gonna go back to my room and take a shower. What should I wear? Nice shirt and pants?”

 

“That will work.  A tie if you’ve got one, although it’s not a big deal if you don’t.  I just like a guy in a tie. Something to grab onto and lead you around with, you know?” she joked.  “I’ll come pick you up. The other guys live in Robinson too, and I’m driving. Creeper van benefits? You get shotgun though.  Don’t even let Kurosaki goad you into arguing about that.”

 

He had ties. They were very plain though. “Text me first,” Ulquiorra said before gathering his things and slipping out the door.

 

Orihime smiled at the closed door for a moment after he left, then turned to her mirror and made herself up.  She put her hair into big waves that cascaded down her back. She put on some fake diamond earrings. Then she grabbed a crate that had her microphones and amplifier and cables and other such equipment and her garment bag and brought everything down to start packing her car.  She would need to take a second trip for other miscellaneous items.

 

About forty-five minutes later, she was parked in front of Robinson, texting Ulquiorra.

 

  * _I’m here.  You have five minutes to reply before I start letting the other guys know.  We still have to stop at Fine Arts for Keigo’s kit._



 

Ulquiorra had been sitting in the lobby of Robinson Tower for fifteen minutes. It hadn’t taken him long to shower, shave, and basically preen himself. He ultimately decided on just a simple white shirt, black dress pants and a tie that had white x’s all over it. It had been one of those stupid Christmas gifts from Steve. Ulquiorra always gave him a tie as a gift so his father’s boyfriend began giving him a tie in return. He tied his hair back into a low ponytail, spritzed some cologne on and strapped his watch to his wrist before he left his room. 

 

He saw the stares that males and females gave him as he sat in the lobby, looking at his phone. It was a relief that Ulquiorra got Orihime’s text when he did. He didn’t know how much more he could take.

 

Instead of texting her back, he jogged out of the building and to her vehicle. When he arrived at her van, he tapped on the glass. “Hey,” he said.

 

Orihime unlocked the door and stared at him with her mouth hanging open for a good ten seconds.  Finally she stammered, “Hey, handsome… Uh, this is a pleasant surprise.” She chewed on her lip a bit as she considered ditching her bandmates and finding a dark alley somewhere to take Ulquiorra to and have her way with him.  She swallowed and cleared her throat as she felt her cheeks heating up. Later. “Yeah. The, uh, ponytail is a nice touch,” she added, her voice wavering. Super cool, Hime. Super cool.

 

A smile came over his face. “Hey gorgeous.” Ulquiorra liked her reaction. It was nice to see her speechless. He got into the front seat and leaned over to kiss her. One hand came up to gently squeeze her breast. “You may text everyone else now,” he said.

 

She looked at him with kind of a  dreamy, half-awake expression. “Do I have to?” she asked, slowly smiling.  She didn’t wait for his reply before she sent out a group text message to the other three young men.

 

  * _Here.  Get your asses outside._



 

“If you don’t text them what would you do? Go to the gig alone?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

“No, I’d ditch the gig and go somewhere with you alone,” she chuckled, running a hand up his thigh.  “You should come with a warning dressed up like that. I’m not going to be able to take my eyes off of you.  Those corporate guys are going to be disappointed that Roger came to distract Jessica. Screw them, though. Not literally,” she added, then kissed him behind the ear, leaving a lipstick mark.  “Shoot, I’ll need to wipe that off. Oh, wait, no,” she said, taking her phone out and getting ready to take a picture. “You mind?”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. He tilted his head so she could get a better shot of it. “Make sure you get the face this time,” he said smiling.

 

She grinned as she took several pictures, then got a tissue out of her center console to wipe the mark off of his neck for him.  “You are going to post one of these, aren’t you?”

 

“You can.” Ulquiorra looked over at Orihime with a sly smirk. “It’s your picture, just tag me in it.”

 

“Okay.  You get to hold my phone tonight so don’t be surprised when it blows up,” she said, getting the picture ready to go.  “Hashtag preshow jitters, hashtag handsome dude, hashtag my man, hashtag ILY.”

 

The green-eyed man just continued to smile. He did not know why he was so enamored with her. Why he wanted to be close to her all the time. He didn’t understand the deep affection he had for her. Why was it just her that caught his eye? “Might want to include the tag ObscurasIV or the number four in there,” he teased.

 

“Do you want me to?  I don’t mind. I was thinking this might be a fun album cover for you some day.  You could photoshop a IV tattoo next to the lipstick,” she chuckled.

 

“I was thinking of getting a real tattoo. Dunno of what yet. They hurt though,” he said. “And I do not mind. If I minded I would never let you take a picture of me.”

 

“Okay,” she smiled as she posted the picture, tagging him in it.  “Done. Also, about the tattoo, think long and hard before committing to it,” she said, giving his lap a glance and smirking at her word choice.  Her face fell a bit a moment later as her three bandmates came out of the door of the residence hall together. “Here come the three stooges,” she said, sitting back into her seat.

 

“Naughty, Miss Inoue.” Ulquiorra knew he could be the same way and before the other trio of assholes got into the car, he rolled his hips. He made his face look bored as ever, planting his fist against the side of his face, propping it on the door as the three males clambered into the car.

 

Orihime looked the newcomers over quickly.  As expected, they knew what to wear and how to present themselves.  They were serious about becoming professional musicians. They didn’t have much with them, though.  “Did you guys leave all your stuff at Fine Arts? Are we going to be able to get there in time?”

 

“Oh it won’t take too much time, Orihime, so don’t worry,” Mizuiro chirped, in the polite way he always used when he spoke to most everyone.  He really was a pleasant little guy.

 

Keigo, for once, had his mouth shut, his eyes unfocused as he visualized the beats for the first song of the night, his wrists twitching in time as he did.  He was nervous; this was his first show as a quartet that wasn’t for other music students.

 

Ichigo, on the other hand, scoffed and glared at her in the rear view mirror.  “If you’re so worried about it, just go.”

 

He wanted to turn around and start bitching at the orange-headed freak. Ulquiorra didn’t, however. He did glance at Orihime, making sure she was okay and not affected by the dickbag’s words. “Hey, Miz and Asano.”

 

Orihime merely rolled her eyes at the diva pianist and began to pull away from the tower.  She glanced at Ulquiorra once they were on the way to the Fine Arts building and smirked. Despite Kurosaki being oblivious to the slight from Ulquiorra, she hadn’t missed it.  Damn, Ulquiorra was the best. She smiled the rest of the short drive to the building.

 

Once they arrived, the instrumentalists got out and went inside to retrieve their equipment and Orihime got out of the car to fold down the center row of seats to make room for their instruments.  “Hope they don’t mind squishing in that back bench seat; not that they really have a choice.”

 

Ulquiorra followed her. “Why do you let him talk to you like that?” he asked, biting on his thumbnail. He needed to stop that habit.

 

“It’s easier to ignore it than argue.  He always escalates things if I argue and it’s not worth it,” came her reply, remembering the tempers flying in the practice room days before.

 

“He thinks he can do it all the time now. Just like that one dickhead with the glasses,” he complained. Ulquiorra frowned. “I’m just saying, maybe, once in a while you should fight back against them.”

 

“Yeah, you’re right, but not right before a show; too much stress.  A little dig won’t hurt though. I have something in mind for later, you’ll see,” she said, her eyes taking an evil squint.

 

Maybe Orihime did have some backbone. She wasn’t a damsel in distress. He smiled at her before he spotted the goons returning. “Your things are coming back. I’m reclaiming my seat.”

 

She laughed and got out of the way of the guys, helping to pass them things that they had left on the sidewalk when they were forced to get into the van lest they be unable to get to the backseat.  Once Ichigo was inside, squished tightly shoulder to shoulder with Keigo, and as Orihime was climbing into the driver’s seat, he bitched, “So how come you guys get the front? This is bullshit.”

 

Orihime could not contain the scoff that erupted from her throat.  “Are you seriously asking me that? Seriously?”

 

“Yeah!  You’re tiny, Hime.  You could fit back here no problem and Oliver could drive and I could have shotgun,” he replied, as if it was a helpful suggestion.

 

“Ha!  You want to sit in front?  Get your own car,” she said, as if it were the final word on the matter.

 

Ichigo didn’t see it that way.  “It just makes sense. Why do you have to get so emotional about everything?”

 

Ulquiorra knew how to insult people. “If you’re worried about space, Ivan… Why don’t you lose some weight,” he quipped, turning around and staring at the guy.

 

It did not have the intended effect.  Ichigo lowered his brows at the dark-haired man and flexed one of his arms.  “Yeah, sure, Ollie. You’re going to have to try harder to conceal your envy over the fact that I am the only one in this car with decent muscle mass.  Sorry guys,” he said, completely unapologetically, to the other guys on the bench with him. “No offense.”

 

He rolled his eyes. “Sure, think that if you want Ivanhoe. Must be nice being a meathead muscle boy. How’re the steroids working for you?”

 

Ichigo just laughed.  He kind of liked this guy.  He reminded him of his dad. “Super.  Super duper, thanks for asking. Are we there yet, Lady?”  He thought he was so cute.

 

Orihime ignored him, concentrating on traffic, which was a little thick at present.

 

“Don’t badger the driver,” Ulquiorra said. “Also, it could be worse. We could have brought my car which is a Honda Accord. Nothing would fit and you’d still be stuck in the back.”

 

Ichigo scoffed and crossed his arms over chest.  “Fine.”

 

Orihime was getting distracted by the bickering. “Knock it off!” she snapped.  “I will turn this car around, boys. Keep it up!” she dared them, using her best mom voice.  “I would really like to get us all there in one piece. It’s only a few more minutes.”

 

Ichigo grumbled but offered no apology.

 

“You know, I could always have Ulquiorra play keyboards.  He’s pretty good. I can pull over and leave you here at the…” she paused, trying to figure out where they were. “At Golf Galaxy.  Maybe you can work on your slice.”

 

“I have a slight hook, if you’re so smart,” Ichigo muttered until Mizuiro elbowed him in the ribs.

 

“Shut. Up. Dude,” the small man said under his breath.

 

“There, the place is right up there,” Orihime announced, visibly relaxing.

 

They parked near a service entrance and started hauling their things inside.  Orihime went to the front to meet with the event coordinator and verify where they were supposed to set up and then met the boys there.  “You guys finish setting up. I need to change,” she said after setting up her mic set and testing the sound. “We can do a quick sound test when I’m back but we are a bit pressed for time. Ulquiorra, would you mind helping me?” She switched from a bossy voice to a sweet one with frightening ease.

 

He raised an eyebrow at her and nodded. Of course he would help her. He’d do anything she asked of him. “Absolutely what do you need help with?”

 

“Getting dressed.”

 

“OOOOOOoooooh…” Keigo crowed, excited for some mysterious event to occur at her words.

 

“Asano, get busy,” Ulquiorra commanded, glaring at the other male. “Lead the way, Orihime.”

 

As soon as they were in the bathroom, Orihime locked the door and hung her garment bag on the back of the door and kissed Ulquiorra.  “Thanks for backing me up in the car. I wasn’t directing my mean bitch voice at you. That was for that other knucklehead in the back.”

 

His response was to back her up against the door, pressing his lips to hers with impatient pecks. Ulquiorra liked it when she got bossy. It was nice. “Kinda want to have my way with you in that dress. I’ve been waiting all day to be with you,” he murmured against her neck where he kept kissing her.

 

“Hmmmmmm,  that can be arranged you know.  Later.” She was enjoying the attention he was giving her.  “You go ahead and keep doing that, I’m going to get naked.”

 

“You get naked and things are going to happen,” he stated matter of factly. Ulquiorra could certainly guarantee it.

 

She chuckled softly and started unbuttoning her shirt.  Whether or not anything might happen, she had to get undressed. “There is a bit of time,” she mused, pulling the shirt off one arm at a time and folding it into a sloppy square.

 

A small groan left him as he watched her. Orihime was slowly torturing him. She had to know that he wanted her. “Do you, uh, go down?” He asked, trying to take his mind off things. What better way to do that than embarrass himself?

 

A small, amused smile appeared on her face. “Later, Ulquiorra. Do you always ruin surprises?”  She shook her head. “I dunno if I should let you fuck me now, actually… it might make you last too long later.  It’s been a very, very long time since I’ve done that.” 

 

“Let me guess, Mr. Brazil wanted his dick sucked but never went down on you.”

 

An embarrassed half-smile and nod later and he had his answer.

 

Ulquiorra gave a snort. “Fucking figures,” he said. “I didn’t ask you for it before because you’re a singer and I—“ his face became red. “It didn’t seem like something you would do.”

 

“It’s usually not,” she said, stepping out of her shoes and pulling off her leggings. “I never really liked it, and you’re right, it’s not good for singing, although the effect wears off  after a good night’s sleep.” She stepped out of the leggings and put her hands behind her back to unhook her bra. “I feel differently about you though; I’ve wanted to do it for awhile now.”

 

Oh. Ohhhhh. He shoved his hands into his pockets to keep from grabbing the short woman. “When is the last time you’ve had a good night’s sleep? When is the last time you’ve actually slept without me beside you?”

 

“Um, not that long ago, I think.  But that wasn’t my favorite thing ever.  I like sleeping beside you.” She sighed and smiled at the idea, shrugging out of her bra.  “I miss my pretty nighties though. Maybe I should take the time to wear them once in awhile.”

 

He shook his head, walking the few steps over to her. “I’m going to behave and I will wait for whatever surprise you have for me after the show. Maybe we can go somewhere after we drop those stooges off.”

 

“Oh, I have big plans for you, mister.  You going to help me into that get-up or are you just going to stand there with your hands in your pockets?” she asked, smirking at him.  

 

“If I touch you and something happens, I am not to be blamed,” Ulquiorra said slowly removing his hands from where he had been keeping them. He let his hands trail up her sides before he cupped her tits, squeezing them.

 

“Oh what the hell,” she said, a smile on her lips.  “Can you be quiet?”

 

He shook his head. “Nope, you know as hard as I try I can’t,” Ulquiorra said. “Besides, you really do need to get ready and fix your makeup.”

 

“Okay,” she said, turning around and grabbing the pair of strappy gold sandals with four-inch heels she had stashed away in her bag.  She put them on and then showed them off, still completely naked apart from her panties. She was trying to wind him up. She could be cruel at times. “How do you like the shoes?”

 

This was bad. Shit. A small whine left him. Ulquiorra quickly had her pinned to a wall again. “I will wreck you. You know this,” he growled before attacking her neck with his mouth, sucking on the skin.

 

She hummed.  “As long as you keep your voice down and don’t leave a mark, have at it.  You have ten minutes.” She was ready for him. Her panties were getting wet.  She didn’t need them, She hooked her thumbs into the waistband and began to shimmy them down her hips.

 

Ulquiorra’s brows rose at her tone. “No, you’re gonna stand up there singing and wanting me just as much as I want you,” he said.

 

“Oh boy.  This is either going to be a highlight of my performance career or a trainwreck.”  She shivered and balled up her panties, contemplating throwing them at him. She cocked her arm back like she might.  “Just kidding,” she said, then turned around and bent over at the waist to pick up her bag and put her used clothes inside.

 

He knew she was toying with him. She was giving him this attitude and teasing him. Ulquiorra could do the same back. He laid a hand on her ass rubbing the skin before he let his fingers slip between her legs. “I think the question is,” Ulquiorra said, “can you be quiet?”

 

“As silent as the grave. I’ve had to,” she purred.

 

“Let’s see if I can make you scream.”

 

“You know you can.  Don’t you?”

 

Without warning, Ulquiorra slid two fingers inside of her. “Maybe I should key you up, leave you like that. I spent that entire first couple of days knowing you with blue balls by the way.”

 

She gasped.  “It’s not like I left you in misery for long,” she breathed,  grasping at her knees and trying not to hum. She loved this.

 

“You couldn’t wait to have me, could you?” Ulquiorra asked as he leaned over to whisper in her ear. “I know I didn’t want to wait to have you.”

 

“I really couldn’t,” she admitted.  “Even before I was sure who you were, when you started singing for me in that practice room, I knew it.  I thought, ‘Self, you are definitely going to bump uglies with your English partner. Better get used to the idea’.”

 

Well that broke the tension in the room. Ulquiorra started laughing. “Dammit, Veggs,” he said removing his fingers from her body. “This isn’t the time for bumping uglies. There’s nothing ugly about your… you know.”

 

She stood up slowly to avoid a headrush, a brilliant grin on her face.  “My what? Say it, Ulquiorra.”

 

He shook his head, face turning a bright pink. “Your--your--” He pressed his mouth into a thin line. Ulquiorra sighed as he saw her smile. “Your pussy.”

 

She sighed, still smiling at him.  “And here I thought you were embarrassed to say vagina.  Vagina vagina vagina. See? I didn’t turn into a frog.”

 

“Tch.” He rolled his eyes. “Let’s get you dressed before I drag you out to your car and have my way with you in the backseat and Kurosaki has to sit in the wet spot.”

 

***

 

An hour later, the sound was checked and the lights were acceptable.  Orihime had met with the person hosting the party and got final approval for her setlist.  At the appointed time, The Vega Highwell Quartet started to play quiet, unobtrusive songs as people started to filter into the room.  Waitstaff with black aprons and white towels slung over their forearms walked around with finger food on trays, offering it to guests, and there was a large crowd on the opposite side of the room where there was an open bar.  

 

It was all rather dull.  Orihime sounded good. Kurosaki and the other two boys sounded good.  Eventually, they were informed that they could take a break while the host and some other people gave some speeches.  The band plus Ulquiorra were invited to leave the ballroom they were in to go sit in the hotel bar lounge adjacent to the lobby, and that someone would come get them when the second half of the gig was to begin.  

 

Orihime nodded and made her way to the side of the stage.  Keigo lent her a hand so she wouldn’t trip over the hem of her dress down the small set of steps, and she met Ulquiorra at the bottom.  “How is it so far?” she whispered to him.

 

Ulquiorra shrugged. “These people are like corpses mulling around and mumbling to each other,” he whispered to her, offering his arm to the redhead. “You sound awesome. I got some photos of you guys. I’ve not posted anything though. Also, your Instagram...” he trailed off and handed Orihime the device. He frowned at the phone.

 

“Really bad?” she asked, looking down at it.  She looked for a minute, only reading one message that more or less called her a fake who reuploads pictures.  “Well, people don’t seem to believe me. That’s hilarious.”

 

She honestly found that funny? Ulquiorra was vexed over it! He was upset about it! “You know we should take a photo since we’re dressed nice and you can actually be in a photo. The heels are a nice touch,” he said.

 

She raised a brow at him.  “Nice thinking,” she said, giving his arm a squeeze.  “Hey, Ichigo, can you come here a second?” she asked, flagging down the tallest of her bandmates.

 

“Sure, what’s up, Buttercup?”

 

“A, don’t call me that.  Weird. And B, can you take a picture for us?”

 

“Oh, yeah, sure.  Where do you want it?” the orange-haired man said, looking around for a place with decent lighting.  “We should take a band picture, too.”   
  


“Sure, if you want.  I don’t care.” She turned her attention to her boyfriend.  “Any particular spot look good to you?”

 

“There’s a spot in the lobby that looks somewhat decent,” Ulquiorra said. The spot he was referring to had a nice table and fresh flower arrangement that sat in front of a intricately designed window.

 

“Lead the way, Love,” she said, loud enough for Ichigo to hear.  For some reason she felt the need to make clear the nature of her and Ulquiorra’s relationship after the weird nickname.  It had left her feeling like the pianist was overly familiar.

 

Ulquiorra wrapped his arm around Orihime’s waist. He didn’t want to seem like the possessive boyfriend she had accused him of being earlier that day. He didn’t like Kurosaki. He didn’t like the stories he heard about the guy and how much of a brat he could be. When they got to the spot, Ulquiorra was hesitant to hand over his phone to the other man. ”Do not swipe through my photos. Do not do anything other than push the shutter button.”

 

“You afraid I’m gonna find pics of you and your ex?  Don’t worry dude, she is not my type. She would not shut up last weekend though.  She and her roommate used to be kind of fun but now they are just bitter bitches,” Ichigo rambled as he took a couple pictures.  “You wanna take pics with that face? You look like a psycho killer.”

 

He narrowed his eyes further then shook his head. All it took was one look at the redhead standing beside him to put him in a better mood. “No I’m just afraid you might see the one dick pic I’ve taken and fall in love,” Ulquiorra replied with a smirk, the corner of his mouth tilting up.

 

“No thanks,” Ichigo said, still amused though.  “You really only have one dick pic on here--”

 

“Oh my God! Jon! Jon! I told you!” A familiar voice screeched. Ulquiorra’s eyes went wide as he saw Steve bounding towards them. “Look! It was her and it’s Ulquiorra! Our boy has finally found love. He’s a bit garish to the eyes but, my, my, my, Ulquiorra. He’s meaty.”

 

“What the…” Ichigo’s eyes widened and he took several steps back.  “I’m going to the bar. Here’s your phone, Cifer.”  

 

“Oh drat! Did I scare your boyfriend off?” Steve asked after Ichigo left. “Ulquiorra?”

 

The dark-haired student’s forehead crumpled in confusion and then embarrassment. His mouth opened several times as if trying to remember how to speak. “What the hell are you doing here? And no! That’s not my boyfriend! I don’t like guys!”

 

The sandy blonde man pouted then crossed his arms over his chest. He turned slightly then waved someone over. “Jon? Your son?”

 

Out of the crowd materialized a man who was slightly taller than Ulquiorra, dressed in a fine navy blue suit. He looked just like the picture Ulquiorra showed Orihime with the exception of a few gray hairs at the temples. “I see him, Steven. I didn’t want to make my presence known to him,” Jon Cifer said in a loud whisper.

 

Orihime looked between the two older men as if she had seen a pair of celebrities.  “Oh my god, Ulquiorra, is it really them?” she asked in a whispered squeal. If she had thought his father was attractive in photos, it was nothing compared to real life.

 

Ulquiorra nodded. “Dad, Steve, this is Orihime or Vega. She’s my  _ girlfriend _ ,” he said. “You didn’t chase away anyone but an annoying git. He was getting ready to take our picture, asshole.”

 

“Don’t take that tone with me.”

 

“You two need to knock it off,” Jon stated. The words were quiet but the threat was still there. Ulquiorra immediately backed down while Steve pouted.

 

“Hmph.”

 

“I could take the picture for you, Ulquiorra.” Jon held out his hand for the phone. 

 

“You’re not even going to acknowledge her?”

 

Jon looked at his son with a slightly irritated glance. “I was going to take the picture and then introduce myself properly since Steve interrupted you. Hello, Miss Orihime. I’m Jon Cifer. This is Steven Harris, my long-time partner. I’ve heard a lot about you from Ulquiorra.”

 

Orihime beamed at them.  “Please call me Orihime, or Hime for short,” she said, extending a hand out to the elder Cifer first and then to Steve.  “It’s such a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. Cifer and Mr. Harris. Ulquiorra has talked about you a lot, too. You’ve raised a pretty special guy, if I do say so,” she said, taking a glance at Ulquiorra.

 

“There is nothing really special about him,” Steve commented in a snotty tone. 

 

Orihime lowered her brows.  “I beg to differ,” she said after a pause, unimpressed by the older man’s sentiment.

 

Ulquiorra wanted to smile but he didn’t. “Why are you two here?”

 

“Duh, your father works in the food industry,” Steve replied. “Why are you here? Did you finally decide to get a job?”

 

Ulquiorra opened his mouth but his father shook his head. “Will you please just take our photo so we can take our break, Dad?”

 

The older man nodded and took Ulquiorra’s phone. “You still look like you want to murder someone,” he remarked.

 

“Smile, please,” Orihime asked, smiling at Ulquiorra and giving his arm a gentle squeeze.  “It’s for us, not them,” she whispered the last part.

 

Just hearing her say that made his face light up. He turned his head and looked at her. He missed the frown on his father’s face. “Thank you,” he murmured back.

 

“Okay, now look at me,” the older Cifer said.

 

Orihime turned toward Jon Cifer and smiled.  Not an over-the-top grin, just a smile that truly showed how happy she was.

 

Now that Ulquiorra had to focus forward, the smile was still there it just wasn’t as bright. When Jon was done, he handed the phone back to his son. “It was nice meeting you Orihime. I can’t wait to hear you and Ulquiorra sing at Steve’s and my party.”

 

“You too,” Orihime called after him and watched him walk away, then turned to Ulquiorra with a frown in her face.  “Why do you suppose they hated me?”

 

Ulquiorra watched the two men walk away and then turned back to Orihime. “My dad likes you. Otherwise he would have made excuses to dismiss you. He’s done it to Nel. Steve on the other hand… He seems rather nonplussed about you.”

 

“I can tell.  You can tell him I have a teeny weeny if you think it’ll help,” she giggled.

 

Shaking his head, Ulquiorra tried to not get annoyed. That was NOT how he wanted Orihime to meet his dad and Steve. He didn’t want them to meet her at all. Steve was harsh with his opinions. “I wouldn’t be with you if you did. Totally not into dudes,” he said. He looked through the photos his father took and frowned at them. He looked absolutely infatuated with Orihime; like the earth revolved around her and no one else existed. It kind of made him happy. “Which one should we post? We could take selfies and also include them in the post.”

 

“Sure.  What bothers you about these, though?” she asked, noticing his unease.

 

“I’ve never smiled much. I’ve never been or looked this happy,” Ulquiorra replied. “Even with Nel I felt somewhat miserable. With you… It’s never been like that.”

 

“Well, I can’t say I’m happy about the idea of you never being truly happy before you met me, but I’m glad you’re not miserable now?” she said with an awkward grin, hoping she construed his meaning correctly.

 

He glanced at her for a moment before holding his phone up and taking a straight faced selfie. “I mean I was happy when I got messages from you or comments. That makes me sound so lame.”

 

“It does not,” she said, tilting her head toward him for another selfie.  “I was happy when I wrote them and got them from you.”

 

“Mmmm,” he hummed. Ulquiorra turned the camera toward Orihime and snapped a photo of her. “I’m going to post these now. Okay?”

 

“Sounds good to me. Wanna follow me to the bar?  I’m parched.”

 

He nodded and followed her, quickly uploading the pictures and tapping out the tags he was using and mentioning her in the post with several emojis. As soon as he tapped the word “Post” there were reactions to the three photos Ulquiorra uploaded. “Done. My face is now on my Instagram account.”  

 

Hadn’t he done it before?  No, that had been Nel. “Wow, this is a big deal. Good thing we’re celebrating later,” she said, kissing his cheek softly and wiping off the bit of lipstick she left behind with her thumb.

 

“You shouldn’t wear lipstick, not with me around,” he said. It was the truth. At any given moment they could be making out.

 

She nodded her agreement.  “For shows only. Or for when I want to leave evidence,” she corrected herself.  She reached the bar and asked for a bottle of water, then looked to Ulquiorra.

 

“Same,” he told the person behind the counter. A small smile played over his mouth as he gave her a side eye glance. “Leave evidence? Isn’t that usually when you leave hickeys all over my neck?”

 

She smirked at him.  “There are other places I might want to leave evidence.  Places I don’t want bruised.” She added an eyebrow raise for good measure.

 

Both of his eyebrows shot up. He was curious about this and what she was talking about. “Oh? Care to tell me?”

 

“I prefer to show you. Don’t worry, I won’t make you wonder for long,” she said, playing it cool. She was usually the uncool one; this was a pleasant role reversal.

 

His expression turned into one of disappointment. Hmph. Ulquiorra placed a hand on her thigh, right where the dress had a slit in it. “Oh yeah? Two can play at that game, Veggs.”

 

“I should hope so,” she said, none of her smirk disappearing.  “Anyway, I think for the second half we’re going to kick it up a notch.  Everybody at the event should have had a drink or two by now so it’s time to get them in a more jovial mood.  If the mood strikes, feel free to sing along.” 

 

“No, no one needs to hear me sing,” Ulquiorra said. He shook his head. “No one wants to hear me sing. This is your quartet, not a quintet.”

 

“I wasn’t suggesting you come onstage.  I meant, like, hold up a lighter and sing along in the crowd.  Sheesh, ego much?” she teased obviously. “Honestly, maybe one day in the future we could do a Jazz duet.  I bet you could put ol’ Blue Eyes to shame.”

 

He rolled his eyes and huffed. Maybe Orihime was getting bored or annoyed with him. First the possessive thing and now he had an ego? Maybe since she had sex with him her curiosity had been satisfied. Ulquiorra bit his lip and looked down at his hands.

“Hey, I was teasing,” she said, taking one of his hands.  “I know you don’t have a big ego. Hey, look at me,” she said softly.  “I’m sorry, I was just trying to be playful.”

 

Ulquiorra pressed his lips together into a thin line. He was trying to keep calm about this. They were just words. Words from other people’s mouths didn’t bother him. “I’m possessive. I have an ego. You know I don’t point out your flaws or your insecurities.”

 

She did not realize how much he took what she said to heart, and hearing him say this cut through to hers.  She never wanted to make him feel bad about himself. “Ulquiorra,” she said, stepping in front of him so he would have to actively turn away to avoid eye contact.  “I’m really, really sorry. I didn’t know you felt that way. I never wanted to make you feel bad. I… I love you for who you are and I don’t want to change who you are or make you feel bad about it.”  She took a step closer to ensure that no one else could hear her words. “I like that you are possessive. I never meant to suggest otherwise. I also like that you have an ego. I find that very, very attractive. I mean, yeah, too much of a good thing can be too much but…  I wasn’t just blowing smoke up your dads’ asses. You are pretty damn special.”

 

He finally looked up at her. “I don’t know how this all goes okay? You’re my first girlfriend. I’m sorry if I get too--This is me. You’re mine. I gave myself to you. And excuse me if I have an ego… People have been telling me that I’m fucking awesome for the past two years.”

 

She smiled at him like he was a gift from god.  “They’re right, you know. You are fucking awesome.  And I  _ am _ yours, so if I say something to upset you or make you feel like I just made you feel, you should feel comfortable telling me and trust that I will do what I can to correct it.”  To emphasize her point, she turned around and leaned against his front, taking his arms and crossing them over her so his hands met above her stomach. “There. This is more like it.”

 

“I tried to say something about it this afternoon and--” Ulquiorra stopped bitching as soon as his arms went around her. “Woman,” he murmured into her ear.

 

“Yes?” she responded, lifting her face toward his slightly.

 

“I’m not that good at expressing myself. I’m sure you’ve learned that by now.”

 

“Sometimes.  Sometimes all of us are bad at it.” She tilted her head back so that it was resting against his collarbone. “Just wait.  Sometimes I’m the worst. We just haven’t gotten there yet. What do you want to say now? What is the simplest way to say it?”

 

He shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m frustrated that my dad is here. I’m irritated by Kurosaki. I’m a little hurt by what you said because that’s pretty much how people treated me when I was younger. I was too intense to be friends with. I was too freaky.”

 

Orihime groaned a bit and turned in his arms.  “Listen here, Ulquiorra Cifer. Your intensity is perfect for me.  You’re not freaky. Kurosaki is objectively irritating and there is nothing that can be done for him; he is a lost cause.  I’m sorry I can’t help about your dad.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and gave him a hug. “I don’t think you know how much I admire you.”

 

“You’ve told me in so many comments and messages,” he replied. Ulquiorra hid his face in his girlfriend’s neck and hair, inhaling the scent of her and enjoying the closeness. “You’ll tell me if I’m being too much right?”

 

“I will.  I have yet to even detect my limits for you, so keep it coming, okay?”

 

A waiter approached the couple.  “Excuse, me, you’re Vega Highwell, right?”

 

Orihime turned her face.  “Yes, are they ready for us to come back on?”

 

The waiter nodded.  “Yes, they’d like you back as soon as possible.”

 

“Thank you,” Orihime replied, then turned back to Ulquiorra.  “Duty calls. The sooner we’re done the sooner we can go home,” she said, grinning.

 

Ulquiorra nodded and took her hand. “Come then, let us go and finish this performance,” he said.

 

***

 

The show went well, Orihime thought.  The second half was much more lively than the first.  The people at the party started filtering out around ten o’clock, and that was when Orihime decided to slow it down a bit, singing more down-tempo, seductive tunes, trailing fingertips across the keyboard and mic stand and eyefucking Ulquiorra from the stage.  By the time ten-thirty rolled around, the place was pretty much cleared out and the boys were packing up their equipment.

 

Ulquiorra had watched her intently, his eyes never straying far from Orihime. By the time she was done, he was turned on. He was ready to get out of there. He wanted to be in his room or her room; it didn’t really matter. “Do you need help getting out of that dress?” He asked Orihime as he helped her off the stage. 

 

“No, I’m going to wear it back.  I have a promise to keep,” she winked at him.  “But, if you want to go get my car from the parking lot and bring it to the service entrance, that would help a ton.   Do you mind?”

 

He smirked and shook his head. “Are your keys in your purse?”

 

“Yeah.  Thank you,” she said, starting to fold up her mic stand.

 

Giving himself another few seconds to watch her, Ulquiorra then turned and went to the area where she had put her bags earlier. He found her keys and then left through a door to the outside. It didn’t take much time to find her car. There was no way his legs were going to fit with the seat that close to the steering wheel. The seat went back and Ulquiorra was comfortable as he started the vehicle. Another minute later he was parked where she said to park. He was going to pull out his phone and text her but Ulquiorra remembered he had her phone. 

 

Ugh. He had to go back inside.

 

“No, Ichigo!  We’re not doing that so stop asking!”  Her voice was loud and sounded like she had been answering the same question for several minutes based upon the level of impatience in it.

 

Keigo and Mizuiro came through the service doors with long-suffering looks on their faces.  “Careful in there, it’s a warzone,” Keigo muttered as he tried to squeeze through the hallway past Ulquiorra while carrying his bass drum.

 

“What the hell is going on?” Ulquiorra asked the two band members. “What’s Orihime yelling about?”

 

Mizuiro stopped and looked back toward the ballroom entrance.  “Apparently Ichigo wants to go somewhere, like an aftershow party.  Vega told him we have class tomorrow and she wants to get back but he won’t let it go.  Apparently she’s out of patience,” the soft-spoken man answered.

 

That was all it took for Ulquiorra to loosen the tie and shove it into his pocket as he walked towards the source of the voices. His expression was angry. This Ichigo Kurosaki was going to learn the meaning of the words, “back the fuck off”. He was tired of the guy harassing Orihime.

 

“Don’t be such a stick in the mud.  I’m not asking that we all go get trashed or whatever I was just talking about--”

 

“I don’t really care what you were talking about.  I said no. You can do whatever you want after I drop you off,” Orihime cut him off.

 

“Don’t be such a prude about it, Jesus. I mean, come on, don’t you wanna come hang out with us?” Ichigo said, and something about how he said it sounded almost suggestive.  Orihime turned her head to look at him like he had grown a third eye in the middle of his forehead.

 

“Did it ever cross your mind, Kurosaki, that we have another engagement after this? Or are you so self-centered that you can’t see past your own micro dick?” Ulquiorra asked as he entered the room, stalking towards the two redheads. As soon as he got close to Orihime, he pulled her to him.

 

Orihime draped her arm over Ulquiorra’s torso and looked at Ichigo.  “See? We’re busy.”

 

“Fine.  Whatever Hime.  You just keep ignoring everyone and the shit they say about you.  I’m just trying to help you meet people and clear your name. If you never show your face then people can say whatever.  And his,” here he pointed his thumb at Ulquiorra, “ex-girlfriend is totally out for your blood. She and that Michelle girl say the nastiest shit to anyone who will listen about both of you, but especially you, Hime.”

 

“Well, Nel was never my girlfriend, so you shouldn’t believe what she says,” Ulquiorra stated. “Orihime is constantly with me, so if people want to talk shit, they can come find me,” Ulquiorra said.

 

Ichigo scoffed.  “Whatever. I don’t understand why you are being so stubborn.  You know, you should just come to  _ one _ of Tier’s parties.  Both of you. Together.  You know what? You and me and him and Kailey can all go together.  People won’t dare say shit then, not when the big names walk in together--”

 

“Her name is HAILEY!” Orihime yelled.  “Your girlfriend’s name is H-A-I-L-E-Y!  Jesus Christ!”

 

“And I don’t like the implication you made of you and Orihime walking into a party,” Ulquiorra snapped. “She’s my girlfriend. If you want someone to fuck, go do Nel and Michelle.”

 

“Ew.  No. I like nice girls like  _ Hailey _ .  I know her name, Hime.  It’s like a joke between us.”

 

“She doesn’t think it’s a joke.  Get a clue, Ichigo. You have to get your head out of your own ass once in awhile.  You don’t see her face when you call her the wrong name.”

 

Ichigo rolled his eyes.  “Whatever. And dude,” he said, looking at and addressing Ulquiorra.  “I don’t want to fuck Hime. Too bitchy.”

 

Ulquiorra had to stop himself from punching Ichigo in the face. He merely grabbed Orihime’s arm and led her out of the room and down the hallway where the service entrance was. “We are leaving. He can get a cab back to the campus,” he muttered.

 

At this point Orihime was too annoyed by the pianist and his overinflated attitude to think about how pissing him off was probably not in her interests.  She followed Ulquiorra out and got in the passenger seat, turning to Keigo, “Do you mind going back in for my stuff? I left it in there. It’s all in the crate.  Oh shoot,” she said, looking at Ulquiorra. “Did my garment bag and other bag get brought out here from the bathroom?”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. All he had done was grabbed the keys from her purse. “I’ll go back in. You guys sit tight, I’ll be back.”

 

He got out of the vehicle and walked back into the building. He made his way to the ballroom where the crate was sitting on the stage. He paid no attention to Ichigo, who was on the phone. Grabbing the crate, Ulquiorra realized that this might hinder Orihime and the pianist’s professional relationship so he decided to be a grown up about this whole thing. “Do you want a ride back to campus, Kurosaki? We’re leaving now.”

 

“Yeah, just a second Grimmjow,” Ichigo put his hand over the phone and looked at Ulquiorra.  “Yeah, let me just hang up and I’ll be ready to go,” Ichigo brought the receiver back to his face and smiled.  “Yep, that was him. No, I’m not going to--- You ask him yourself,” The ginger chuckled. “Yeah, alright. You too. Bye.”  He ended the call and pocketed his phone. “Sorry about before, I get kind of… hot-headed. That was my, uh, friend, by the way.  He wants to meet you.”

 

The green-eyed man stared at Ichigo with a flat gaze. “No, thanks. I don’t go out and meet people. There’s a reason why Orihime doesn’t go to parties. Being associated with me and who I am makes her--Let’s just say my manager doesn’t want her to go anywhere without me.” He knew he was bullshitting the guy but he couldn’t help it. “I don’t go anywhere because although I’m some type of whatever people want to call me, I’m dedicated to my studies.”

 

Ichigo raised a shoulder as he slung his keyboard stand over a shoulder and picked up the keyboard case in his other hand.  “Well, good for you, I guess. Fame is… what’s the word? Capricious? I don’t know if that’s the right one. Shall we?”

 

He didn’t trust this guy. Kurosaki was way too full of himself to be trustworthy in Ulquiorra’s eyes. After stopping by the bathroom to grab Orihime’s stuff, Ulquiorra made his way back to the car, handing Orihime everything after he got behind the driver’s seat. He gave her a look as Kurosaki got in.

 

Orihime gave him a questioning smile.  He could explain what happened later.


	17. Doubt

The boys agreed to take their instruments back to their dorm, except for the drum kit which they decided could sit in Orihime’s car overnight.  Everyone was anxious to get back home. Especially Orihime.

 

Ulquiorra dropped her off at the door to her place.  Tatsuki was out at her new girlfriend’s house. Orihime had told him to meet her in her room, and dashed through the lobby to the stairwell so she wouldn’t be seen by too many people in her costume.

 

It took him exactly three minutes to park the car and jog back to the woman’s dorm. He took the stairs up to the second floor and then knocked lightly on Orihime’s door. Ulquiorra kept looking around. Sometimes he got paranoid while visiting.

 

She opened the door and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him into her room, and then kissed him, shutting the door with her foot.  “Finally,” she said into his lips, starting to unbutton his shirt already.

 

“Hey wait a minute; what--I guess this--” Orihime was kissing him again urgently. Her fingers kept their course with disrobing him. “This isn’t going to be a slow and steady wins the race thing, huh?”

 

Not that Ulquiorra minded if it was or was not slow. He just thought she would have questions or comments about the whole Kurosaki thing.

 

“Sometimes the first one out of the gate wins, you know,” she said, unfastening the last button and pushing the shirt off of his shoulders.  “Too bad you ditched the tie; I kind of wanted to lead you around by it. Next time…” she said between kisses as she worked her way down from his ear, to his jaw, to his throat and down the center of his body until she was bent over, kissing his navel.  “Don’t move.” 

 

“It’s in my--” His breath hitched as he felt her mouth on his torso. What the hell was she doing? He squirmed a bit as her hands trailed over his sides. It tickled slightly. “What--Hnnnngh.”

 

Orihime stood up and grinned at him, then turned to her purse.  She took out the tube of red lipstick she had worn for the performance and grabbed her desk mirror.  “I told you I wanted to leave evidence,” she said as she turned to the mirror and started putting on a fresh coat.

 

Ulquiorra’s eyes went wide as he realized what Orihime meant. A little shiver went down his body. “Can I at least lay down for this?” he asked. He bit his lip, raking his teeth over the bottom one. “You might want to take that dress off too. I might rip it.”

 

“Gentlemen’s preference, although I did promise to let you fuck me in this dress.”

 

He knew how he got. He didn’t want anything to happen to such a nice piece of clothing. There had been a few incidences with Nel’s bras and undies. She had given him head and then Ulquiorra found himself holding scraps of the clothing. After the fourth time, she didn’t offer it again. Nel also didn’t like the fact that Ulquiorra pulled hair.  “I mean… I do, but it’s too nice for me to that. What if we ruin it?”

 

A small smile teased her lips as she finished putting on the lipstick.  “Then it will have fulfilled its destiny. Still, I want you to enjoy this.  You tell me if you want me in this, naked, or in a bad habit?”

 

Should he tell her how he got during blowjobs or just let her find out for herself? Ulquiorra gazed at her. “How attached are you to that?” he asked, gesturing to the dress.

 

“Well, I do  _ like _ it…” she raised a questioning brow. Now she was curious. Was he some kind of animal during this kind of thing?

 

He gave her a chance. Ulquiorra walked over to Orihime’s bed and laid across it with his head by the wall and legs dangling over the side. He grabbed one of her pillows and propped his head up with it. Then he smirked at her while he unbuttoned the pants he was wearing. 

 

Orihime had to bite back a chuckle.  Who did he think he was, some kind of king waiting for service?  She smiled and pressed her lips together as she watched him. Nel must have really been desperate to please him.  She pushed that thought away as fast as possible; she didn’t want to be thinking about her.

 

Orihime set down the mirror and waited as Ulquiorra shimmied his pants and boxer briefs down his hips.  Once his cock was in the open air, she looked him in the eye. “Comfy? Ready?”

 

“You think you can handle it?” Ulquiorra asked with a raise of his eyebrow. He had his hand wrapped around the base of his cock, stroking it in a lazy manner. 

 

“I dunno, looks like maybe you don’t need me,” she said, narrowing her eyes and licking her teeth.  “You sure you can handle  _ this _ ?”

 

“I’m just touching, not really doing anything else,” Ulquiorra replied. He smiled at her. “We’ll see if I can. You’ll know if I can’t.”

 

“Mmhmm,” she said, nodding, and walking so that her knees were right in front of his.  “Keep that up for a minute, will you? I have to get these pants off of you,” she said, not waiting for an answer.  She leaned over, placing a kiss on the side of his torso as her hands hooked over the top of the waistband of his boxer briefs and pulled until they reached the waistband of his pants, then gathered both layers together.  As her hands crept downward, Orihime hummed and pulled her lips back.

  
That band of muscle right above his hipbones had been calling her name.  She grabbed it with her teeth, biting with very light pressure, then scraped her teeth down the length of it until she got to his hipbone, which got a small nip and a kiss.  

 

His hips gave an involuntary jerk when he felt her mouth on his skin. Oh and she bit him. That was nice. Ulquiorra reached up and grabbed the pillow with his free hand, determined to be calm about this. “Hungry?” he asked, voice thick with desire.

 

Orihime looked up at him, replying in a smoky voice, “Starving,” as she bypassed his cock to give the same attention to his other side and hip.  When she finished at the joint, she continued rasping her way down his thigh , following her hands as they pulled his pants down past his knees. When she was there, she took her teeth off of him and pulled the clothing all the way off of him as she knelt.  When he was free of it, she went to the other knee, this time using her tongue to lick a slow trail from his inner knee all the way up to the point of the junction between his leg and his body, just to the left side of his cock. The flesh here had a tiny, tiny bit of give, and she grabbed onto it with her teeth as her hand joined his on his cock.

 

Another jerk of his hips. Damn. “Don’t bite too hard,” he breathed out, watching her activity. A deep purr came from his throat as Ulquiorra closed his eyes.  

 

Orihime smiled as she snuck a peek at Ulquiorra’s face. She tightened her grip on his hand, holding it in place where it was on the base of his cock.  She let the tip of his cock brush against her chest as she dragged her tongue across his belly, then down to the side of his dick that didn’t have his wrist in the way, and placed a firm kiss on the side of his shaft.  She pulled back, admiring the lipstick mark she left on it. “If it weren’t so obscene, I’d ask for a picture of this.”

 

“Go ahead and take one,” Ulquiorra said, opening one eye enough so that he could look at her. He was already feeling his heart beat at a fast pace. He had to take several deep breaths. “As long as they don’t get uploaded anywhere, I’m fine with pictures.” 

 

She grinned a Cheshire Cat grin and reached for the phone on her desk.  “I’ll be making a subfolder in Bad Habit for this,” she said, framing a shot of him laid out on her bed  and snapping it before getting a close-up of his cock. “Hnngh, this is a very good bad habit.”

 

Ulquiorra grinned and released his cock, bringing his hand to rest on his stomach. “You are a bad habit.”

 

“Oh?  I have yet to show you how bad I can be,” she said, putting the phone aside and licking a trail from the base of his cock to the tip with a firm, flat-of-her-tongue lap, before enclosing her lips over him and immediately swallowing him down as far as she could without hitting her epiglottis and tightened her lips around him, about half-way down his shaft.  She slowly pulled off, swirling her tongue around the head before her lips released him with a pop.  “Not bad,” she commented, picking the phone up again and taking another picture, this time of her lipstick marking how deep she had been able to take him into her mouth. 

 

It had happened so fast the only thing Ulquiorra had been able to register was her mouth enclosing over him. His eyes opened; he stared down at Orihime and what she was doing. By the time she was done, a loud groan left his throat. “Ahhhh, fuck,” Ulquiorra said. “Your mouth needs to come with a warning, Veggs.”

 

She giggled. “Just wait,” she warned, before going back to him, kissing and licking her way from base to head again, feeling him grow harder and hotter still.  She wanted to see some precum for her efforts, and she was pleased to see it when she made her way back up to the head of his dick. She kissed the small bead of fluid off  of him and took him into her mouth again, sucking gently and massaging the underside of the head of his cock with her tongue as her hands slowly stroked the length.

 

Ulquiorra rubbed his stomach in a circle trying to dispel the tension building there. There was no fucking way he was going to come that fast. Absolutely none. His eyes gazed at her for a moment before he was rocking himself into her mouth and used the hand holding the pillow to grab a fistful of auburn hair.

 

Orihime nearly rolled her eyes.  Of course he was impatient. Fine.  He wanted to play fast and furious? She could play fast and furious.  The hand on his cock was joined by a second one. She knew what was coming next and she didn’t want to have to explain to Aizen tomorrow that she couldn’t sing at studio lesson because she had been choking on a cock the night before.  Using her hands as a guard to keep him from going too deeply, she let Ulquiorra thrust into her mouth, keeping a nice firm ring of tension with her lips and tongue.

 

His brow furrowed as he watched her. His mouth flattened into a line as he stopped his hips. With a sigh, Ulquiorra let go of her hair. Orihime was not Nel and probably could not deal with an hour of him fucking her mouth. Besides, she was a singer and the abuse would be too much for her. “Sorry,” he mumbled.

 

Something in the way he said it made her blood run cold.  She stopped what she was doing for a second to look at him.  “Don’t be sorry…” Shit. Why was she feeling discouraged? She could do this.  What was-- Oh. _Oh._ She was not as good as Nel had been at this was she? She couldn’t stop her brows from raising and her lips from pursing.  She took a quick breath and tried to shake it off, chasing the thought from her mind. She leaned forward again and put him back into her mouth, bobbing her head up and down, but she couldn’t get the mood back that she had previously.  She was just trying to get it over with now. Fuck. This is not how she had wanted it to go. No. It wasn’t how she was going to let it go.

 

She decided to change tact.  She pumped him with her hand and licked the head, seeing if he would respond to that.

 

He didn’t. Ulquiorra sat up and scooted away from her. “We need to talk about this,” he said. He could see the look on her face before she was on him again. It felt off. He patted the space he made as he bent his knees. “Come here.”

 

Was he being fair to her? Probably not, but there were some things that Obscuras had never told Vega. He never said a damn thing about the extent of his and Nel’s relationship. Orihime deserved a warning at least.

 

She didn’t go to him.  She sat on the edge of the bed, head down, fingers curling into the fabric of her dress, trying desperately to stop the feelings of inadequacy that were threatening to make her cry.  What the fuck was this? She had never felt like this before. She never cared if some guy didn’t like what she was doing, not that she often did this, but she always was confident that the receiver was just grateful to get anything at all.  She cared an awful lot what he thought, though. She waited for him to say whatever he was going to say.

 

“I ruined the mood. Sorry. It’s not bad. What you were doing was… It was fucking awesome. Like as soon as your mouth was around me, I was ready to blow. Not something I expected. With seafoam-teal bitch it took at least an hour of me roughly acting like a neanderthal to get off. You’re a singer and I can’t do that because of your classes and you’ve got that thing in a couple of weeks,” Ulquiorra said. He bit the inside of his cheek, hoping she’d take it as a good thing. 

 

He was so, so very wrong.  He had made it sound like he was disappointed that he couldn’t use her roughly.

 

When Orihime just sat there, he continued. “I kind of lose my mind when I get head… Nel let me treat her as rough as I wanted to while she was doing it. I hoped by doing that it’d drive her off.” He shook his head at himself.

 

What the fuck? She didn’t know how to take what he was saying to her.  He was talking like his words were meant to make her feel better but he was just making it worse. It was going to take a little time to process what he was saying. Why would he want to use her as he had used Nel?  He supposedly loved her, not Nel. There was something else to it that she couldn’t put a finger on it. She looked down at her lap again, grateful that she was dressed. This would suck much harder if she wasn’t.

  
Ulquiorra was confused. Why did she look like that? This was obviously something they needed to talk about. “Veggs, talk to me. I’m sorry I got handsy with you. You deserve a much gentler handling; not me being impatient and grabbing your hair while I try to shove myself down your throat,” he said in a soft voice. 

 

She cleared her throat.  “I don’t really know how I feel right now.”  That was the truth, she didn’t. “I feel very confused,” she said, knitting her brows together and looking at the floor.  “I’m not really sure why...” she trailed off.

 

“I’m not sure why you feel like that. You should pat yourself on the back or feel proud. You’re the only person who has made me come within a few moments of being with you,” Ulquiorra replied. He moved so that he was sitting next to her. “You’re better than She-bitch at everything we’ve experienced together. I love you.”

 

That’s what it was; what she wasn’t able to put her finger on before.  “I know you love me, but for a minute there, it was like you forgot who I was; like your mind went back to her.  Like you wished I was her. I didn’t recognize you. And now you’re contradicting yourself, telling me I’m better but complaining that you can’t do what you used to do.”

 

Shaking his head, Ulquiorra looked at Orihime. “That’s not what it is. I wanted to come but I didn’t because I wanted to draw it out, because it felt awesome, but I had to remember that you actually use your voice during class so I couldn’t go all out. I don’t know. I barely think of her anymore. I just get flashes of memories.”

 

She scowled.  “I don’t think I’m the authority on this or anything, but usually isn’t face-fucking someone what you do when you want to get off faster?  I think what I was doing would have taken longer. I don’t know what to say about not being able to fulfill your need to go “all out”, or whatever, but it feels kind of shitty to know that I am somehow inferior.”

 

He nodded his head once. “Okay,” Ulquiorra said standing up. He started gathering his clothing. It was clear that he ruined things and Orihime wasn’t going to listen to him. Maybe he wasn’t explaining things right. He kept his back to Orihime as he started pulling his boxers on. “Sorry.”

 

Orihime didn’t say anything as she watched him getting dressed.  Was he just going to leave? She chewed on the inside of her cheek.  She still felt this sick, gnawing feeling in her gut that she couldn’t shake. How had things gone from sexy to this so quickly?  After he had his pants on, she said, “I’m sorry, too.” How on earth could he consider leaving her now? Was he that offended that she did not enjoy being used like some kind of toy?

 

Looking over his shoulder, Ulquiorra glanced at Orihime. He didn’t bother putting the shirt on as he sat back down. “I’m gonna go back to my dorm. I’ll see you in class?” That sounded so lame. Why couldn’t he just tell her? He knew why. He didn’t like mentioning Nel around Orihime. It seemed to be an insensitive thing to do, despite unconsciously doing it on a daily basis.

 

Holy shit.  He was going to leave.  He disliked her efforts enough that he couldn’t even bother to try and reconcile with her.  It felt to her like time skidded to a halt. She slowly raised her face to his and looked into his eyes.  If she had any sense of time passing, she would have realized she was doing it for far longer than what would be considered normal.  “Will I see you in class?” she asked, not really aware she was saying it. She was trying to figure out what was going on in his head. “No, I won’t.  We don’t have class together tomorrow.”

 

“I meant on Thursday. I mean we have that webinar thing but I can understand...” Ulquiorra let his words drift off. At this point he didn’t know what he was really trying to say. “I’ll definitely see you on Thursday. I’ll text you tomorrow or message you.”

 

She was still staring at him when she felt it, the first of what would probably be several teardrops streaking her makeup down her cheeks.  This felt like rejection. This felt like abandonment. This felt like somehow she had fucked up and didn’t know how or why. She opened her mouth but no words came out.

 

The tears made his mouth turn at the corners. Ulquiorra sighed. He didn’t like women crying. Whenever they did it, it just seemed overdramatic to him. He couldn’t tell Orihime what was going on in his head and he didn’t want to drag this out. She was probably riding on the emotions of the fight with Ichigo. They both were probably too frustrated to rekindle anything. He finally stood up and put his shoes on then found his shirt which he shook out. Maybe he should kiss her goodnight. Maybe he should comfort her somehow. The problem was, he didn’t know how. “Do you want a goodnight kiss?” he asked after buttoning the shirt back up. 

 

She sniffed and swallowed a few times before she was able to answer in a weak voice, “Well, yeah…”

 

Ulquiorra walked back over to where she sat and pulled her up. He wrapped his arms around her before tilting her face up. “Hey,” he said.

 

“What?” she asked, hoping he’d change his mind and decide to stay, but not counting on it.

 

“I love you, okay? I’m only going because it looks like I kicked your puppy and maybe you need space,” he said to her. Ulquiorra bent his head down and pressed his lips against her own. Desire flared inside of him but he held back. “We need to work on the communication thing a bit though.”

 

“You would know without a shadow of a doubt if I needed space from you.  But if you need it, take it. I love you too,” she said in a tone to match her watery expression.  She squeezed him despite giving him the green light to leave, burying her face in his chest. Part of her was worried that he might walk out that door and never come back.

 

Squeezing her tighter, Ulquiorra kissed the top of her head. “I know I said I was going to leave Kurosaki there but you need him for your concert class. I didn’t want to make him mad and refuse to do it for you,” he said quietly.

 

She pulled her head back to look at him, blinking some of her tears away. What did Ichigo have to do with anything?  Maybe Ulquiorra thought it was important. “He didn’t apologize to you?”

 

“I just told him we were leaving and asked if he wanted a ride back. Told him that we don’t go out anywhere because of our status as internet celebrities,” he explained. “He was asking for a ride and said I should go meet this guy named Grimmjow.”

 

Orihime almost smiled at the internet celebrity comment.  She was not a celebrity. “Grimmjow? That does not sound familiar to me.”

 

Ulquiorra shrugged. “I have no clue who Ivan’s friends are. I don’t really care who they are either. With a name like that he’s probably some delinquent. Do you want me to leave?”

 

“No, I never want you to leave.  Unless I tell you, “Leave,” then I pretty much want you to stay,” she admitted, somewhat self-aware of how clingy she sounded but not enough to be very embarrassed by it.  

 

He took a step back from Orihime and toed off his dress shoes. “Do you have any sweats for me to wear tonight or just sleep in boxers?”

 

She smiled. “I’ve got a couple pairs of your sweats in here.”  She shook her head. Maybe this was all being blown out of proportion.  She decided to try to lighten things up. “Also… Was it just me or do you think Ivan might have an itty-bitty mancrush on you?”

 

He rolled his eyes before he kissed her again. “Ugh please. No. Ivan is the least attractive thing on this campus and that’s because off his orange hair and shitty attitude,” Ulquiorra stated. 

 

“You wouldn’t believe how people fawn all over him in the music department.  Keigo is one of the worst offenders.”

 

A smile played over Ulquiorra’s mouth. Then his face got serious. It wouldn’t do to bottle all this up inside. “About before… the being rough… I don’t like it. It doesn’t do a thing for me except prolongs everything,” he said, making sure she was paying attention. “I knew what you were doing was going to make me come sooner than I wanted to.”

 

Orihime nodded, understanding what he was saying.  “I’m still confused on why you would do that, then.  I mean, you don’t like it. I don’t like it. Why do it?”

 

“I have no clue, Orihime. It just switched on in my brain,” Ulquiorra replied. “I am sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad or anything.”

 

She twisted her mouth a little, trying to decide whether to tell him how it made her feel or to gloss over it and spare his feelings.  But, he was being honest, so she should be too. “It made me feel inadequate; like what I was doing wasn’t good enough.”

 

Oh. His stomach seemed to bottom out hearing that. “No, no, no. You were doing a really great job and maybe one of these days when Kurosaki isn’t ruining moods and it’s just me and you, maybe we can trade favors. Get out of this place for a couple of hours, go find some seedy motel in the somewhat bad part of town,” he said, trying to get her to smile.

 

He got half a sad smile.  “Maybe. I didn’t realize though that Kurosaki had gotten into your head that much.  I just bitch at him and then forget him as soon as he isn’t in my face anymore.”

 

“What others say to people I care about has a big impact on me. Maybe it was also Steve who was being an asshole that got under my skin. I don’t like how Kurosaki treats others,” he commented. “If I was a better pianist I would have done the accompaniment for you.”

 

That earned him a real smile.  “I know you would. But you know, as much as a jerk as he is, I don’t think he means it.  I think he’s really just that dumb.”

 

“He’s an idiot.” Ulquiorra had to agree with her though. He kissed her and started backing her towards the bed. “Then again the same thing could be said about me.”

 

“Oh?  What makes you say that?”

 

“Orihime, we just had a huge misunderstanding that could have been avoided had I just said something.”

 

“But you did, eventually.  I don’t think he ever would even notice.”

 

“Want to make a bet on when Hailey leaves him?” Ulquiorra asked. He was trying to make quick work of that clasp and zipper that held her dress in place.

 

Orihime rolled her eyes.  “Maybe when the next Ichigo comes along.  She is a sweet girl with bad taste in guys.”

 

“Okay, this may sound strange but now that you’ve spent some time with me… What’s your impression of me? Is it the same?”

 

She grinned at him.  “Seriously? You’re a bit more, what’s the word, sensitive isn’t it but it’s close to what I’m thinking of.  You seemed more unflappable online. You’re also more real. A lot more real. And, honestly, in real life you are just really loveable.  Like, I can’t not love you. What else…” she trailed off, thinking. There were a lot of differences, most of them good. “I’ll think some more.  What about your impression of me? You once said you thought I was the same. Do you still think so?”

 

“No online you seemed untouchable? You were polite but overly so. I feel I can tell you anything. I couldn’t do that with Nel. I know you won’t judge me if I talk about what’s bothering me,” Ulquiorra said. He finally got the hook undone. “Being in love with you in real life is vastly different from being in love with you online.”

 

“You were in love with me online?” she smiled at that. 

 

Ulquiorra nodded, his face heating up. “Yeah, that’s my big secret,” he said.

 

She pushed up on her toes and kissed him about twenty-seven times, then hugged him tightly.  “Thank you. You’re right though, I mean, I thought I was fooling myself to think you treated me any differently than anyone else, but you made it pretty hard not to imagine that I was special to you.”

 

“C’mon. We have class in the morning and we have to snuggle before bed. Tomorrow we’ll have a late lunch together or something,” Ulquiorra said as he peeled the dress from her shoulders.

 

She yawned.  “I’ll meet you in there.  I have to take this stuff off of my face or I’ll break out.  Your sweats are in my top drawer,” she said, going to the door and grabbing her bathrobe and bath caddy.  “Be right back.”

 

With a chuckle Ulquiorra got undressed but instead of putting his sweats on, he laid them across the foot of the bed. He then proceeded to climb under the blanket. He sat there playing on his phone and scrolling through the comments on the newest photos he’d uploaded to Instagram. People complimented how they looked. Some people had left sad faces. He had DMs that showed how people truly felt.

 

He was going to try and be a better guy to Orihime. He was going to try and back off being the whole jealous boyfriend angle and have a more open mind. She deserved it. Maybe they would go to one of the music people’s parties.

 

Orihime didn’t take long to wash her face and brush her teeth.  She wasn’t much for hiding how she really looked to Ulquiorra so she wasn’t shy about coming back to her room with a bare face.  It helped that she had nearly flawless skin, but even still, she was comfortable with him. She felt like he loved what was inside first.  What he had said about being in love with her online only proved that point.

 

She raised a brow at the sweats at the end of the bed.  “Naked sleeping buddies? Don’t mind if I do,” she said quietly, grabbing her phone before slipping under the covers with him without bothering with pajamas.  “Anything good on the interwebs?”

 

He handed her his phone and sighed. “People being idiots about our relationship. There’s one chick that says she is better looking than you and can rock my world. I don’t know whether to laugh or just shake my head and block her.”

 

“You can’t block all your fans, but if she gives you a bad feeling, just block her. Life’s too short.  Out of curiosity, what does she look like?” Orihime said, hitting the back button to see the DM in question and then clicking on the username.  “Well, I don’t like to toot my own horn, but I hope I’m more attractive than her. Woof.” A hint of jealousy may have tinged her opinion.

 

He rolled his eyes. “I don’t find any of these offers to hang off my dick enticing. I told you Veggs, I only want you. You’re the only person that makes any of this tolerable.”

 

She nestled her back into his front and sighed in contentment.  “I know, I’m not worried, it’s just kind of rude of these people.  I don’t expect any better from them but it’s still rude. You would laugh at the DMs I get from people asking how I went about seducing you and what tips and tricks I can share with them to do the same.  Like I’m going to publish a pamphlet called, “How to Steal My Man in Ten Easy Steps!” or something like that,” she shook her head and chuckled. “Not that I think they could. I’m no Einstein but I know you’re not much into idiots.”

 

She pulled up the picture that his father had taken and stared at Ulquiorra’s face.  He really looked in love with her. She smiled and yawned again, before murmuring, “I can’t blame them for being jealous, though.”

 

***

 

“Ulquiorra?”

 

“Mom?”

 

There was a sigh. “I’m here with the manager. Sorry it took a bit to get back with you. Komamura? I told you about him,” Maria said.

 

The green eyed male nodded and looked at his mother in the screen of his phone. She had decided to have a video conference on Friday. All Ulquiorra wanted to do was leave his dorm room and go over to Orihime’s. “Sure, I remember you telling me about him.

 

He watched as Maria pulled a man into the frame. “This is Sajin Komamura. He can help you navigate these contracts and help you decide which one is going to benefit you the most.”

 

“That’s all well and good but how likely is he to screw me over?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

The enraged gasp from the woman was loud. “Ulquiorra you can’t ask—“

 

“I can and I will,” he said.

 

It took mere seconds for the man to reply. “There’s always a chance that you’re going to get screwed over. But I try my best not to do that to my clients because if I screw up then that means your money is screwed up and no one gets paid,” the rough looking man said.

 

He looked old and like he had seen some shit in his life. The bristled beard and the bushy eyebrows made him seem ancient. 

 

Ulquiorra raised his eyebrows at the man. “Okay and?”

 

“I’ve never intentionally screwed over a client.”

 

So they talked business and when it was all said and done Obscuras IV had a band manager.

 

After the call ended, Ulquiorra messaged his girlfriend.

 

- _guess who has a band manager now. Also a lawyer and if I need it I have a social media intern. Wtf? Lol_

 

Orihime was just walking out the door to go to her theory class.  

 

  * _Are you serious?  That came together quickly!  Congratulations; are celebrations in order?_



 

A small smile played on his lips.

 

\- n _ope. Komamura has to get paperwork ready and he’ll be looking at those offers I got. He and my mom will be flying out here soon so I can sign. Day going okay so far?_

 

Wow.  Things were really coming together for him.  She should be proud and happy for him, and she was, but there was a tiny voice in the back of her mind whispering that this was just the beginning; and eventually he’d be on to bigger and better things.

 

She told that voice to fuck off.

 

  * _That is so exciting!!!  I knew you would be recognized. :D I just left my dorm; on the way to theory.  What about you? Ditching class today?_



 

Yeah he was ditching class today but it was for a good reason. Besides missing one class wasn’t going to hurt him. He’d get notes and whatnot later on.

 

- _I kind of have stuff to do today. Just got done with a video call with my mom and manager dude. I need to record some more stuff. I’m getting my hair trimmed. We still on for Chinese and movie for tonight?_

 

Oh?  This is interesting.

 

  * _I cannot wait.  I’ll tell the speech teacher that you had an emergency if she even asks.  Have a great day! <3_



 

If Ulquiorra’s grin could have gotten any bigger it would have split his face in half. He could not believe how much joy and feeling Orihime brought into his life. He blushed and bit his lip as he tapped out a reply to the redhead.

 

_ \- thanks Veggs. I hope you have an awesome day. Text me between classes? _

 

He was sweet.  She blushed as she replied.

 

  * _Like I could stay away.  I think I’ll grab lunch with the theory boys if you’re busy and then practice with your least favorite person.  Whoopity doo!_



 

He really wanted to sigh because he would never be busy for Orihime. He thought he would drop everything if she needed or wanted him. Ulquiorra was tempted to press the button to call her but he didn’t. She was probably busy with class.

 

\- _Love you. Will text you around lunch. <3_

 

Theory class was pleasant as usual; Orihime did well identifying intervals and sight-singing.  After she was done, she was invited to sit in the lobby with the guys from class to chat a bit before everyone went their separate ways.  No one had time to go to lunch with her, but they never had much of an opportunity to talk except for Keigo and Mizuiro.

 

“So, Orihime, what’s your boyfriend like?” the question came from a tall, skinny, guy named Eric.

 

“He’s great,” Orihime said with a confused smile.  “I mean, I don’t know what you’re asking exactly.”

 

“Oh, nothing, I guess, just curious what it’s like, you know, being YouTube famous,” the blond replied.

 

“Oh, well, he doesn’t have a comfortable relationship with the fame.  I think he is still figuring it out.”

 

A guy with black hair who hung out with Eric asked a follow-up question.  “So, is he beating them off with a stick?”

 

Orihime furrowed her brow.  “Fighting who off?”

 

“Chicks, duh,” the one called Connor said.  

 

Orihime shook her head and turned her attention elsewhere.

 

“Hey, sorry, no offense, it’s just that you’re not…”

 

Her head snapped back to him.  “I’m not what, Connor?”

 

Her sharp tone silenced him.

  
“No, tell me?  I’m not what?” she demanded.

 

“I don’t know… you’re not like, A-list?”

 

Orihime was not in the mood to deal with morons.  “Okay, buddy. You get to judge when you’re on the A-list, okay?  I’m going to get lunch,” she announced, leaving the building.

 

On the way to the lower campus cafeteria she texted Ulquiorra.

 

  * _How’s your day so far?  I am about done with people.  I love you too. <3 _



 

Ulquiorra had been fine until he got to the barbershop. The asshole had cut too much hair and instead of a trim and it falling to the middle of his back, his hair now sat at his shoulders. He’d been very agitated since that happened. He decided to say fuck the rest of the day. When Orihime texted his phone he was getting back to campus.

 

_ \- Shit. Hair is short. Do not like. The guy cutting my hair misunderstood. I’m done with people today. Are you busy or no?  _

 

She had things on her schedule but she was already texting Ichigo to cancel rehearsal for that afternoon and figured if she missed speech it would not be the end of the world.

 

  * _No. I’m playing hooky the rest of the day.  This day can suck it. I want to see your hair.  I bet it looks good even if you don’t like it._



 

He couldn’t stand it. He finally tapped the phone icon and waited for her pick up. “Hey,” he said quietly. 

 

“Hey, are you alright?” His tone concerned her.

 

“You want to meet at your car? Or we could hang out in my room?” Ulquiorra asked, avoiding her question. He didn’t know how he felt at the moment. He’d had his long hair for years. It hadn’t been this short since eighth grade. “We can get out of this place, maybe go somewhere for the weekend? Want to go spend the weekend with Steve? Totally joking.” 

 

He could have asked her if she wanted to voluntarily spend the afternoon at the dentist’s and she would have agreed if she thought it would make him feel better.  “If you want to spend time at home I don’t mind going, if they are cool with it. But if you just want to leave town in general that’s fine too.”

 

Ulquiorra sighed. “I don’t but I need to get out of here. Everything seems really overwhelming--Wait. You’re going to skip class too?”

 

“Yeah, I was planning on it.  I’ll email the professor and tell her we both are sick.  She knows we’re joined at the hip; it shouldn’t be a surprise that we’d get sick at the same time.”

 

“What about Diva? You gonna tell him you’re sick?” Ulquiorra asked. The last thing he wanted was Kurosaki riding Orihime’s ass for missing practice.

 

“I already canceled.  I just told him I am not coming.  He’s not the boss of me,” she said, in an informative tone.  “Anyway, you want to get out of town, I want to get out of town, let’s get out of town.  Even if it’s just for the afternoon. We can go to your hometown if you want; you can show me the significant locations for your biographical movie, then we can come back later, if you want.”

 

A chuckle. Ulquiorra had a tiny smile on his face. “I’m at your dorm. Should I go wait by the car?”

 

“Um, no, I’ll meet you in my room.  Tatsuki went to her girlfriend’s house for the weekend so just let yourself in.”  Orihime had told him the combination for her dorm’s lock a couple weeks ago, with Tatsuki’s approval, of course.  “I want to drop off my bag and grab a few things.”

 

He raised an eyebrow. “You’re not in your room?” Ulquiorra felt kind of weird walking into the dorm knowing she wasn’t there.

 

“No, I’m walking up from lower campus.   I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

 

Nodding at the few faces he knew, Ulquiorra pulled open the door to the stairwell and let the door shut behind him. “Okay, I’ll be waiting for you,” he said. He ended the call and walked up the stairs. It didn’t take him long to enter the combination to the lock and hide himself away in her room.

 

It took Orihime a little more than five minutes to get to her dorm, and another two minutes to get her room.  She entered to see Ulquiorra sitting on her bed. “Hey,” she froze, taking in the sight of him with shorter hair.  “Wow,” she said, her eyes wide. She couldn’t process what she was seeing right away. It was a dramatic change. She knew she liked it.  She knew it looked nice. But she could not immediately reconcile that it was still him.

 

He glanced up at her and sighed. “It’s awful. I told the guy I wanted it trimmed. About two inches cut off and maybe some layers. This is what I got. The shortest layer is two inches.”

 

A small smile pulled at her lips.  She didn’t want to be insensitive, but the more she looked at it, the more she liked it.  He looked more… put together? Maybe that was the word, she wasn’t sure. All she knew is that she wanted to touch it.  “Awful is not the word I would use,” she murmured as she dropped her bag and walked toward him.

 

“You like it?” he asked looking up at her. Ulquiorra tilted his head up and waited for a kiss. “There’s nothing for you to grab onto anymore.”

 

She widened her smile.  “I do like it. I like it more than I care to admit,” she said, straddling his lap and kissing him, bringing her hands up into it and and playing with the ends.  She pulled back and grinned, “Oh, this is plenty to grab onto. It’s so soft like this. You look so… so… hot.”

 

Hmph. She was supposed to lament the loss of his hair with him, not say he was hot. He gave a quick shrug. “It might be easier to manage. Not so hot in the summer but no more manbuns,” Ulquiorra said. “You really like it?”

 

“I mean, don’t get me wrong, I adored your long hair, but…” she scrunched her nose up as if she was admitting something she shouldn’t, “I really do like it like this.  It makes you look older. It makes you look like…” she trailed off, blushing. Those thoughts were probably best left unsaid.

 

“Tell me Orihime,” Ulquiorra stated. He grabbed the back of her head and pulled her in for a kiss.

 

After he released her, she bit her lower lip for a second and looked at him from under her lashes  “It makes you look like a boss. Dominant.” She could die now of embarrassment.

 

The smirk that crossed over his face was one that held much amusement. He’d never been much of a dominant partner with Nel. She ran the show. Maybe with Orihime he could explore that side of himself. “Is that what you want? Someone to be lord and master of you?” he asked. 

 

She affected a petulant pout.  “No, I don’t want that… No, I don’t.  But I want someone who is at least equal to me as a partner.  Someone I can admire. Someone who can give direction as well as take it sometimes.  I don’t want a lapdog or a doormat. You were never those submissive things to me but now it’s just all the more apparent.”

 

A hand ran up Orihime’s back. “You want me to occasionally tell you to get on your knees and suck my cock or that I’m going to fuck you?” His eyebrow raised and the smirk widened.

 

She scoffed, but it wasn’t very convincing.  “Uh,  _ no _ … Um…” she trailed off as she imagined it and shivered.  Her lips curled into a pouty grimace, she looked down at her fingers, and said, in a very small voice, “It would depend on the occasion.” 

 

Ulquiorra tipped her head up, gazing at Orihime’s face. “Just trying it out,” he said with a soft smile on his lips. He let the hand that wasn’t on her back run through her hair. “I know what you’re saying though. I look like I could command a legion of minions and not be questioned. You really like the hair though?”

 

“It really suits you,” she said, her features settling into an adoring smile.

 

“Well, we will see if others share that opinion. I have to see what the droves of fangirls say about it soon,” he commented. “Why are you skipping class and done with people today? What happened?” 

 

A soft eyeroll and sigh preceded her answer.  “Some guys were talking to me after class and asked about you; how you were handling your fame.  They wanted to know if you were beating off women with a stick. Wondered what you were doing with someone like me,” she said, twisting her lips as her heart did the same at the memory.  She knew Ulquiorra didn’t think that way but it stung anyway to hear someone from real life say something like that. “Said I wasn’t  _ A-list _ .”

 

Ulquiorra scowled and then frowned. “You’re with me. Who cares if you’re A-list? I’m not even A-list material. I’m a fucking singer on Youtube with one live performance.”

 

“For now.  Just wait, Mr. I-have-a-band-manager-and-a-lawyer,” she teased, running a finger down the side of his nose. “It’s too bad you’re going to be stuck with a D-list girlfriend, because I’m not going anywhere.”

 

Mister? Hmmm. “Well Mrs. I-have-a-band-manager-blah blah blah,” Ulquiorra said. “I don’t plan on you going anywhere anytime soon. So we’re stuck with each other.”

 

She chuckled and pecked his lips.  “I love you,” she said before giving him a nice tight hug.  She needed it more than he probably did, but that was okay with her.

 

A content sigh left him as he wrapped his arms around her. It felt nice that she liked his hair even when he didn’t. Her acceptance with the whole thing was good. “You know Veggs, I’m glad that I don’t have to change for you.”

 

She didn’t let go as she asked, “Why would anyone want to change you?”

 

“Nel? All those women on the internet?” he replied. “They all would eventually want me to change. Not once have you implied you wanted me to change or you wanted me to be something that I’m not. You’ve been the same anchor for the past two years; I appreciate it. Thank you for skipping class with me.”

 

She grinned.  He could feel it at the side of his neck.  She squeezed a little tighter and kissed the top of his shoulder. “You’re welcome,” she said before letting go and letting her hands slide down to his elbows.  “So, what do you want to do on our day off? Hungry?”

 

“Kinda,” Ulquiorra said, leaning back slightly, using his arms to keep himself from falling back. “How about you? You hungry for something?”

 

She nodded.  “Pasta.”

 

His mood went from horny to unimpressed. He rolled his eyes then shook his head. “I thought you were gonna say something else but you want pasta? Okay, we can get pasta. I can call my dad and tell him that we’re coming into town, if you’d like.”

 

She grinned, catching his meaning too late, but hungry enough to let it go. Besides, he had taken it so well… He really was a great boyfriend.  “I’d love to if it’s what you want to do. As long as I get pasta and get to hang off your arm I’m a happy girl.”

 

He smiled, shaking his head. She was silly but he loved it. “Get freshened up and I’ll call Dad,” Ulquiorra said. “We’ll stay the night there and come back tomorrow. I’m feeling adventurous so maybe we can go to Sado’s tomorrow night.”

 

Ooh, she liked this.  Adventure was good once in awhile.  “Okay, sounds good. I’ll be back in a minute,” she said, grabbing a towel and her bath stuff, and a granola bar, which she opened as she got her stuff together and shoved a bite into her mouth.  

 

As soon as Orihime was out of the room, Ulquiorra texted his dad. Of course his dad called him back. 

 

“Kiddo?”

 

“Daddio?”

 

“Don’t call me that,” Jon said. “You’re going to be rolling in tonight?”

 

“Yup, I need to get out of this place. I went to get my hair cut.”

 

“Let me guess...” his father said. “It’s short.”

 

“To my shoulders,” Ulquiorra replied.

 

There was a long whistle. “That’s been a minute. What kind of pasta?”

 

Ulquiorra had to think about this for a minute. He didn’t really know the answer to this. He just knew it was rare that Orihime ate carbs. “Uh, something with a light sauce? Ravioli? Something with protein? Lasagna?“

 

His father chuckled. “Steve’s working late tonight at his site and I’m at the bakery right now. I have an order of cupcakes for a birthday party tomorrow and scheduled to work in the cafe later… Maybe...”

 

“You want to enlist my help if I come home?”

 

“You can bring Orihime,” Jon replied. “I don’t want to make lasagna or something that’s going to be heavy. I got this recipe that I’ve been dying to try so don’t worry. I’ll make it and put together some antipasto. Anything else? Do you need me to get the guest room ready since she is coming?”

 

The musician blew out a breath. “Uh, no, not really Dad. We’ve been--” Ulquiorra was unsure how to tell his father this. “We’ve been sleeping together.”

 

“Duh.”

 

“This is serious.”

 

“I know, Ulq. Anyone within fifty feet of you two can tell that you’re smitten with her. We’ll talk more when you get up here. Okay? I’ve got to get these marshmallow cupcakes into the ovens,” his father replied. “You’re staying the weekend right?”

 

“No, planning on coming back tomorrow. Why? Do you want us to stay?”

 

“Mmmm, probably not. Depends on Steve’s mood. You know how he can get.”

 

Tch. Steve could take a long walk into an active volcano too. He rolled his eyes. “I’ll see you guys in a couple of hours,” Ulquiorra said before he hung up.


	18. Occhi Verdi

Orihime came back to the room cleaned up and not as hungry as before, having finished off her granola bar.  “So? What did he say?” she asked, going to her lingerie drawer and picking out some underwear.

 

Green eyes watched her closely, following every movement Orihime made. “He’s gonna make pasta,” Ulquiorra said. He stood up and walked up behind the short woman. “We, however, are being enlisted into helping him at the cafe that is attached to the bakery, if you’d like to help out. Otherwise you can grab a seat while I work.” His hands came up and cupped her tits.

 

“As much of a turn on as watching you toil might be, I think I’ll be well advised not to portray my character as a lazy princess to your family,” she said, pressing her backside into his front.  “I don’t have to get dressed right away, you know…”

 

“Hmmm? You don’t?” He echoed, grabbing her hips. Ulquiorra pressed a kiss into her shoulder after he smoothed away her damp hair. “And what is this about a lazy princess? You’ve always worked hard for me.”

 

“Oh? I  _ could _ be a lazy princess, if you’re into that kind of thing,” she said, untying the sash of her robe.

 

Ulquiorra grinned and turned her around, peering down at her. “Maybe once in a while you could be a lazy princess, but I like seeing you work your body for me. Want some before we go or do you want to wait until we get there?”

 

“Oh, you know me, I’m always up for seconds,” she said, pushing him toward her bed.  “You need to get there in a hurry?”

 

A small grunt left him as he flopped onto the bed. Ulquiorra scrambled to undo the zipper and button on his jeans before he pulled his t-shirt up his torso and over his head. “C’mere, Baby.”

 

“Yes, sir,” she said, pulling his pants down further before she kissed his penis quickly and climbed onto his lap.

 

Ulquiorra’s hips rocked up when she did that. Soon he was going to have to give her another chance at that. “You really like doing that, don’t you?” he asked.

 

“I don’t mind, that’s for sure,” she said, playing coy.  “Especially since it’s you. I did not always like it.”

 

“Can I ask why?” he asked as he grabbed his dick waiting for her to settle herself down.

 

“I can tell you later, it’s kind of unsexy,” she said with an awkward laugh as she walked up the sides of his thighs on her knees.

 

He hummed in agreement. It wouldn’t do to break this spell. Ulquiorra wanted to be inside of her. It had been several days since they did anything. “I don’t mind going down on you. I like it.”

 

She smiled as she took his cock from his hand and positioned it under her.  “Glad to hear it; I like it too,” her voice reduced to a mere sigh as she began to sink over him.  “Mmm, that’s better. Now I’m home,” she murmured to the ceiling as she began rocking her hips slowly.

 

Ulquiorra really just wanted to bury the entire length of himself inside of her. Orihime seemed to like the pace she was going at though. He’d have to have some patience. He exhaled sharply as her body came into contact with his legs. “I’m so glad I waited for you,” he murmured, reaching up and placing his hands over her nipples.

 

“I’m glad you did too,” she said, leaning down and kissing him momentarily.  She placed her hands on his belly after she sat up and began moving faster. She had missed him more than he knew; she wanted to come with him badly.

 

“You keep that up and you know what is going to happen,” Ulquiorra said, letting his hands fall to her waist, grabbing her. A smile appeared on his face for a few seconds. “Can I help with anything?”

 

“You just think about baseball or something for about two minutes.  Close your eyes. I’ll tell you when you can open them.”

 

His eyebrow raised and Ulquiorra shook his head. Baseball? Did this woman not know him? He closed his eyes, his hands trailing up and down her sides while he contemplated if it was worth challenging Steve to a game of chess. God that was boring. He couldn’t think about that when Orihime was on top of him. Then he understood. As soon as he focused on what she was doing, he started panting.

 

“Hey, I said no peeking,” she said, her cheeks flushed and breath puffing. “Close your eyes.  I don’t want you to see this ‘til I’m ready.”

 

“You don’t know how hard it is to focus on something when--Hnnnngh....” He groaned, rolling his hips up to meet her. Of course, Ulquiorra squeezed his eyes shut. “When you’re doing this.”

 

She whimpered as he went into her deeper.  “Just try, okay?” she said in a tight voice.  Seeing that his eyes were shut, she brought two fingers down to her clit and started to work it in time with her hip movements.  It was truly less than a minute and a half before she started to tighten on him, and she was starting to get breathless. Her skin was red and her eyes were closed when she finally breathed out raggedly, “Okay, you can open your eyes.”

 

Ulquiorra’s eyes immediately zeroed onto what she was doing. He had never seen a woman do what she was doing. “Fuck,” he said, grabbing her hips and thrusting up into her. “Fuck Orihime. I’m gonna come.”

 

“So am I!” she nearly shouted, beginning to whimper in rhythm as her walls squeezed and released his cock. 

 

“Come on me,” he moaned. Dear lord, if she had this in mind she should have warned him. How the fuck was he--Oh. The first pulse went through him setting his nerves on fire as he felt his cock twitch inside of her. “Orihime,” he growled.

 

She reached her peak as he said her name that last time, an impossibly soft, choked cry the only sound that escaped her as she rode the blinding heat and deafening pulse that overtook her body.  Her hand stopped moving and she collapsed onto her palms, her upper body hanging like a ragdoll over Ulquiorra’s. She panted for a moment, then whimpered, “Ulquiorra…”

 

He huffed, his heart still racing rapidly. “Woman?” he murmured back in question.

 

She laid down on top of him, settling her face against his chest, their bodies still connected.  “I love you. And that was awesome.”

 

“Awesome? That is beyond awesome… that’s--I can’t even describe it. I want to see you do that, you know, touching yourself without me being inside of you.” Ulquiorra rubbed her back, trying to will his chest to stop rising and falling so rapidly. “I love you. We’ll rest for five minutes and then get going. Make sure you bring a Bad Habit.”

 

She chuckled silently.  “I can do that for you whenever you want.  It’s real easy when all I have to do is lie there.  I’ll bring a bad habit and a good one. You can pick the bad one, if you want.”

 

“You said you had nighties,” he replied, hands still touching her. “Got anything that’s like, red or black?”

 

“Pffft, do I have anything that’s like red or black?  Don’t be ridiculous. Of course I do,” she giggled sweetly.  “So, a red or black nighty? That’s the bad habit? I thought that was the  _ good _ habit.  Oh well, I have something that I think would be considered decent even by Jon and Steve standards, say, if there’s a fire or something and we have to run out in the middle of the night.”

 

He smacked her ass lightly for her cheekiness. “Don’t be sassy. I will tie you down,” Ulquiorra teased her. He smiled a bit as he thought about it. “I don’t know. I’m in the mood for something that shows off everything but at the same time covers the important parts? Black sounds good though.”

 

“I know just the thing.”

 

***

 

After they’d dressed and Orihime had packed a bag, they went out to her car.  “You want to drive? You know the way,” Orihime offered.

 

Ulquiorra gave her a look that seemed to ask if she was insane but he nodded. “I think I’m getting better at handling that, you know,” he said after he got inside the car. He fastened his seatbelt and then started the vehicle, waiting for Orihime to get settled.

 

“Are you talking about me or the car?” she asked, joking, but honestly not exactly sure what he meant.  She buckled up and adjusted her jacket and pulled the darn shoulder strap down so it wasn’t hitting her in the chin.  “I wish they designed cars to accomodate people who aren’t in the NBA, by the way.”

 

“Get a Beetle or a Fiat,” he said as he backed out of the space. “But you wouldn’t be able to cart around anything in those. No band members, no equipment and no tall boyfriends.”

 

“Well then I can’t get one.  You’re tall.”

 

“We can only take one car to California if we’re going,” Ulquiorra said. “I mean we could drive out there in separate cars… You’ve never seen my car have you? I have a small car.”

 

“You mentioned it on Tuesday.  If we went in one car, which would you want to leave behind?  I mean, you could maybe ask your dad if you could leave yours at his  house, but I’d have to sell mine, which, honestly, would be okay.  Then I wouldn’t have a car payment on it anymore, but on the other hand, we could probably fit all of our stuff in here easily.”

 

She was still making payments on this thing? It seemed a bit… dated. Ulquiorra looked at her and then laughed. “My car is Steve’s old Honda. He gave it to me as a “it’s great you graduated and are leaving the fucking house” gift. It has a lot of miles on it but I did put Nel and my stuff in it. It seemed like she brought her entire fucking bedroom with her.”

 

Orihime laughed.  “Somehow that does not surprise me.  But, you didn’t answer the question. You’re the only one between the two of us who knows both cars.  Which?”

 

“It’s not my choice.” He glanced at her briefly as he signaled to turn onto another street which would take them to the interstate. “You need a car and I need a car. We’re not always going to be going the same places. If… IF I had to choose, we’d both keep our vehicles, take yours out there. I don’t even know if I’m going. It’s overwhelming and… I’ve not been out to L.A. since June.”

 

She nodded.  She was glad he was the one to bring up the need for two cars. He had been touchy lately and took a lot of things she said negatively. “I think it’s a good idea.  Have you given any thought as to where you might want to go if you said screw you L.A.?”

 

He shook his head. “There’s Nashville, but honestly, I’m not cut out for the scene there. There is no way I can be considered a country artist. If I don’t go to L.A. I might just finish a generic degree at this place and then go join my dad and help him out until I figure out what I want to do,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Hmm.  Yeah, I can’t see you in Nashville.”  She was quiet after that, falling into a train of thought.  If he stayed at OSU, what would she do? She was already thinking about leaving.  Her mouth moved from side to side as she considered it. The rumors about her were pretty well established, and it would be hard for her to fight them at this point.  Would it be necessary to clear her name? She didn’t owe chastity to anybody, and as long as no one was harassing her, she supposed it made no difference what they thought about her sexual appetite.

 

Maybe Ulquiorra was right.  Maybe they should be more social.  Especially if they were going to possibly stay.  She took a deep breath and nodded to herself as she watched the traffic in the  southbound lane.

 

“You’re quiet,” Ulquiorra said. He was concentrated on looking in his mirrors but he kept glancing over at Orihime. “What’s on your mind?”

 

“Oh, I was just thinking about what to do if you stayed. I would want to stay too, then.  I would have to try a little harder to get along with people in that case,” she laughed a little.

 

“I’d probably declare a music major,” Ulquiorra stated. He didn’t see what was so funny. Those people that were spreading rumors about her were assholes. “The guitar guy has already been on my heels since he found out who I was.”

 

She smiled at that.  “Well then at least I have one person on my side in the department.  I mean, Keigo and Miz are  _ probably _ on my side, but I have a feeling that once we break up the band it’ll be sayonara and thanks for all the fish.”

 

“Douglas Adams fan too?” he asked giving her a smile. “Rickman playing the robot was brilliant.”

 

She sighed happily.  “Rickman, Rickman, Rickman.  Sometimes I just fall asleep saying that name over and over,” she paused, looking at him impishly.  She was playing around.

 

“Funny, I can hear you say my name when you’re sleeping,” Ulquiorra teased back. “It’s okay. Alan Rickman was a gift to the acting world.”

 

“I do?  It doesn’t surprise me, but I do?”

 

He nodded as he merged into another lane. “Yep. When I get up to go to the bathroom or silence my phone or something that wakes me up at night… When I get back into bed, you snuggle up to me and just say my name.”

 

She blushed.  “Aw, I’m so cute…” She said it like she was talking about somebody’s puppy.

 

“Tch,” he scoffed. Ulquiorra was silent for the next couple of minutes as he got onto an exit. He hated driving in this city. It was nerve wracking at times. “So, it’s gonna take about two or three hours to get there. Put some music on? We can have a sing along.”  

 

Orihime nodded and plugged her phone in the the auxiliary cable. “Requests?”

 

“Ladies choice for the first hour?”

 

“Okay,” she said with a grin. She played a list that she had saved called “Vega’s Covers,” and it contained songs that she had sung or wanted to sing. The first of these was “Devil’s Haircut” by Beck.

 

Ulquiorra smiled at her song choice. Sadly, the only Beck songs he knew were the popular, overplayed ones. “Which song is this?” he asked nodding his head along with the beat.

 

“Devil’s Haircut,” she said, going back to seat dancing for a bit then asking, “You know it?”

 

By the time the chorus came around, Ulquiorra knew what song it was. “Steve played it all the time. Yeah,” he said. “It’s one of those songs you know the music and some of the lyrics but never know the name to.”

 

She grinned.  “Steve has good taste.”  After that song ended, a Silversun Pickups song started.  “I’ve been waiting… I’ve been waiting for this moment, all my life…” Orihime started in on the lyrics right away.

 

He shook his head with the smile still on his face but didn’t join her in the song. “You know, I’m thinking maybe we can do another set at Sado’s,” Ulquiorra said as the song came to an end. “Thoughts?”

 

“I think it’s doable.  What brought this on, though?” she asked, turning the volume down a bit.

 

He shrugged. “I don’t want to do this music thing without you. We’re Vega IV. We didn’t agree to do the first gig as Obscuras IV.”

 

Orihime didn’t really know what to say, but her heart was pounding.  “Ulquiorra, I… I love you. I am really… Wow. Do you know what you’re saying-- what it means to me?”  her eyes stung. It was incredibly touching that he would even consider them as a more or less permanent duo.

 

“Vega,” Ulquiorra said, taking one hand off the wheel and reaching out to her. He kept his eyes on the road. “Orihime, I love you too.”

 

She squeezed his hand and let him have it back.  “Safety first,” she said with a sniff and a chuckle.  “You know that people want you, though, right?”

 

He nodded. “I know, but I really can’t see myself doing anything without you. Call me sentimental. You’re the one who started it all. Three comments made me want to post more so that I could get more feedback from you.”

 

“You’re not the only one, you know.  I subscribed after that first video. I checked your channel daily.  Something in your voice, something in your soul, really, reached out to me right away.  I felt it in my bones that through your music we were connected. That sounds kind of hippy trippy maybe but that’s how I really felt then.  I still feel that way.”

 

“We are connected now. In more ways than just music,” he replied. Ulquiorra shook his head. It was amazing how he went from feeling nothing for anyone around him to feeling everything there could be felt about the female sitting in the passenger seat. She was his world at the moment. She had been his world for a long time. “I know people want me. but they’re going to have to deal with both of us.” 

 

***

 

It was still light out when they rolled into town.  Orihime had to go to the bathroom something awful.  

 

“Can we please stop before we get there?  I don’t want to be rude and and rush past people without saying hello in order to get to the bathroom.”

 

“I offered to stop like an hour ago,” Ulquiorra said as he pulled into a fast food place. It would be good to get out and stretch before they went to his dad’s bakery. “Honestly, Woman. You could have said something and I would have stopped.”

 

“I knew you were not loving the driving, so I tried to just deal with it,” she said as fast as she could.  As soon as the car stopped moving, she was out the door and running into the place.  

 

Ulquiorra followed her, locking the car. He stood at the counter and ordered a coffee for himself. She was right about him not loving the drive. The first time he made it with Nel sitting beside him, Ulquiorra had bitched the entire way to the University campus. His irritation was also the impending comments that were going to be coming from Steve. 

 

Two minutes later, Orihime came out of the restroom looking like a new woman.  “Okay, now I’m ready to go work in food service,” she announced to him as she approached.

 

He was still waiting for his item. “Do you want anything to drink? I just ordered a coffee,” he said. Ulquiorra opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted.

 

“Excuse me,” a voice said behind him.

 

The dark-haired man turned to see a blonde female standing behind them. “Can I help you?” he asked.

 

“Are you Obscuras IV?” she asked before giggling. “My friend says it’s not you because you have like, really long hair but--” the anonymous woman held up a phone with a picture of him. “It really looks like you.”

 

Orihime smirked and put her arm through Ulquiorra’s.  “No thanks, I have a water in the car. I’m supposed to avoid caffeine until Thursday,” she said after acknowledging the blonde with a polite-enough smile and a small nod.  “Someone you know?” she asked Ulquiorra, giving him the option of denial if he wanted to.

 

He shook his head at Orihime’s question. “Uh,” he said, not really knowing how to answer the question he had been presented with.

 

“But you’re Ulquiorra Cifer right? Your dad is Jon Cifer? You’re Obscuras, aren’t you?” The blonde was not giving up.

 

“Did I go to school with you or something?”

 

“Yeah I’m a senior--”

 

“Okay, yes, I’m ObscurasIV but you don’t get any kudos or special treatment because you’re probably one of those assholes who never paid any attention to me while I lived in this hell town,” Ulquiorra replied then turned his back to the light-haired woman. Luckily his coffee was waiting for him. He grabbed it and then held Orihime’s hand as they left the place.

 

“Okay, you never talked to me about that. How long til we get to your dad’s place?”

 

Ulquiorra sighed. “What do you mean I never talked to you about what? And probably ten minutes tops?”

 

“I mean, that people treated you shitty here. I asked about timing because I don’t want to get into something we don’t have time to adequately discuss; it will have to wait for another time.  But, there are some things we should probably talk about that haven’t come up before today,” her mind was back to the question he had asked her before they had sex early that afternoon.

 

“Nel was pretty much my only friend here. Her and Pesche, her brother,” Ulquiorra said as he got back into the car. “There’s not much to discuss. I look like a freak. I’m an introvert and Nel is my--was my best friend. A lot of people overlooked me for other opportunities.”

 

She pursed her lips and nodded. “I can sympathize to a degree.  I take issue with you thinking you look like a freak, though. You’re dead sexy.”

 

Ulquiorra leaned over and kissed her before he started the car. “Just a word of warning,” he said, leveling a look at the redhead. “I hate this place.” 

 

She smiled at him and nodded.  “Then let’s not go making any plans to come back here after graduation, okay?  Chase away the thought. I don’t ever want to go back to Minneapolis either. We’re here for Jon and Steve and pasta.  Right?”

 

“Just my dad, the coffee at the bakery and the pasta.” He gave her a smirk. Seven minutes later they were turning into another parking lot of a L-shaped building that held both Cifer Confections and a business called Occhi Verdi. “Welcome to my dad’s bakery and coffee shop. It’s the place that made me a cappuccino snob. I can also tell when someone just adds things to a box of cake mix and says it’s homemade.”

 

Orihime looked at the sign on the coffee shop, and a wide grin slowly bloomed on her face.  “This…” She turned her smile toward him and nodded. “Okay then, turn me into a snob.”

 

He gave Orihime a strange look as he turned the car off and pocketed the keys. What was she so happy about? “C’mon then,” he said, getting out.

 

She got out and slung her purse over her shoulder,  turned to the car windows to check her reflection to make sure her hair wasn’t crazy or anything, then walked to the front of the vehicle to meet up with Ulquiorra.  “So, what do we have to do? I’ve never worked in a place like this. Am I going to be just clearing tables or something?”

 

“I have no clue,” he said as they walked into the bakery side. The bell above the door jingled as they walked in. Ulquiorra let Orihime go first. He knew what was waiting for him inside.

 

“Welcome to Cifer--What the hell are you doing back here?”

 

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes. Behind the counter of the bakery stood someone the green-eyed man did not like. “Shawn,” he said. “You can run off and tell my dad I’m here.”

 

“Fuck off, do it yourself. Just because you’re some internet--”

 

“Dammit Shawn!” came the booming voice of Jon Cifer. He stood in the doorway of an office with his arms crossed over his chest. “You’re at work and that language will not be tolerated.”

 

“Yes, sir.”

 

The corners of Ulquiorra’s mouth turned up as he listened to the jock cower in front of his dad. For years Shawn made Ulquiorra’s life hell but the guy was on probation and had to have a job. “Dad,” he said, nodding at his father.

 

“Great! You’re here. Go work the counter and Orihime--”

 

“She’s never done food service. She can serenade the customers.”

 

Jon frowned. “She can help me then. Orihime!”

 

“Yes sir,” she said dutifully, snapping to and coming to heel.

 

Ulquiorra scowled at her and then his father. “Did you not hear me?”

  
“I heard you. I also gave you a job to do. You’re on the clock, Ulq. Go, your apron is still hanging up,” Jon said to his son before turning to the woman. “You know how to measure things and put them into a mixer? If not, you’re going to learn. I’ll pay you too.”

 

“In pasta, right?” she joked quietly, not sure if that was the kind of comment Jon would appreciate.  “I do know how to measure and dump. What do you want me to do?” she asked, honestly curious about what she was going to be set to task on.

 

“We are going to be making cupcakes, at least the basic batter for it. Wedding tomorrow that I have to deliver them too; let’s get to it!”

 

“Okay!” she said, digging a hair-tie out of the front pocket of her purse and pulling her hair back, tying it up in a doubled-up ponytail at the base of her neck.  “Can I stash this right under here?” she asked, pointing to a spot under the counter.

 

Jon shook his head. “Go ahead and put it into my office,” he said pointing at the door he came out of. “Also grab and apron--Ulquiorra, go.”

 

“But Dad!”

 

Jon Cifer gave Ulquiorra a stern look which made his child scamper off. “Ready, Orihime?”

 

“Ready!” she said, smiling, just the right amount.  One could tell that Orihime had a lot of experience interacting with adults.

 

About an hour later, Jon set a timer and began to clean up the mess. Orihime was great at taking direction and helping him but she wasn’t a professional baker. “So, Miss Orihime, we need to talk,” the man said as he began piling things into a mixing bowl.

 

She nodded, taking it in stride.  “What would you like to talk about, Mr. Cifer?”

 

“My son.” Jon gave her a look like a concerned father would look at anyone when it came to their child. “Ulquiorra, as you are probably aware, is different.”

 

She pressed her lips together lightly and nodded once.  “He is certainly different from anyone I’ve ever known,” she agreed.  She was sure the elder Cifer had a point he was dancing toward. She was careful not to derail him.

 

An eyebrow was raised and Jon tilted his head slightly. Maybe this girl had some sense about her. “Don’t make him regret letting you into his world, okay? I’ve heard a lot about you. I’ve heard all the comments and messages. I’ve heard him pour his heart out about you.”

 

Orihime’s chest twinged hearing not only Mr. Cifer’s words and the images they conjured of a younger Ulquiorra gushing about Vega.Strife00, but also the fear bubbling just under the surface of the father who so clearly loved his son.  “Mr. Cifer, I love your son. I know it might seem like I’m too young to know what I’m talking about or that we haven’t known each other very long, but I’ve known him for two years. He’s been my most constant companion during that time.  I am very serious about him.”

 

Great.  Sometimes she just didn’t know when to shut up.  Oh well, too late now. Hopefully Jon would take what she said as she meant it and not freak out at the words she chose.

 

The man stopped gathering the used measuring cups and spoons. He pursed his lips as he listened to her. “Orihime, I just don’t want what happened to his mother and I to happen to him. I don’t want him to have this fast whirlwind romance only for it to fizzle out when reality smacks both of you in the face and tells you it’s time to wake up. I’m going to tell him this same thing. He looks at you like no one else exists.”

 

Orihime smiled gently, looking down at the counter before bringing her smile to Jon.  “Occhi Verdi?”

 

“Know Italian, do you?”

 

“Only what they write about in arias.  Does she have them too?” she paused and her smile faltered for just a moment.  “He showed me pictures of the three of you, but I couldn’t tell.”

 

A bittersweet smile briefly showed on Jon’s face. It looked almost identical to Ulquiorra’s smile. “I named the coffee shop that after  _ him _ . Occhi Verdi has only been open about ten years now. Ulq was eight when I was successful enough to start it up. It’s named for him and he’s never questioned the name. I think he thinks that it has something to do with coffee,” Jon replied. “Just remind Ulquiorra to take it slow.”

 

“Mr. Cifer, I know we are looking at a set of circumstances that most people don’t have to navigate, ever.  I know it’s going to make things more complicated. It already has. I’ll try to keep his feet on the ground.  I’ll try to keep both of us there. I don’t know what else we can do.”

 

Yeah, this girl was a lot more level-headed and realistic than Nelliel. She had a brain and seemed to use it. “Go ahead and take a break,” Jon said, shooing her. “Go get something to drink or a snack from the coffee place next door. Oh, and Orihime?”

 

“Yeah?” she said, twisting around again.

 

“One, call me Jon. Mr Cifer makes me feel ancient. Two, you’re better than Nel. Thank you.”

 

A small half smile broke the tension that had briefly appeared on her face.  “Thanks, Jon.”


	19. Something About Hipsters and Vivaldi

Ulquiorra knew why his father wanted him to go help out at Occhi Verdi. There was some bumbling idiot behind the counter and customers standing or sitting around grumbling. Within twenty minutes, he had everything straightened around and was getting praised by his old boss. It was when the clock hit seven P.M. that his dad told him to hang up the apron and come collect his flour dusted girlfriend.

He did that. He left the two other people to clean up as he returned the apron to it’s hook and returned to the bakery side of the business. It was good to get his head out of the clouds and just be the Ulq that slung coffee around and could get someone’s order to them in less than two minutes.

His father was waiting for him behind the counter. “Did you take a break?”

“No.”

“Doesn’t matter. Here,” the man said, handing his child a hundred dollar bill. “That’s for both of you, so make sure you split it accordingly. Don’t say anything to Steve either. I’m going to give this place a quick clean up; you two can head over to the house. Orihime!”

“Do you need something, Jon?” she called from the other side of the room, trotting toward the men.

Jon? His dad was allowing her to call him Jon? Not even Nel got to call him that! Ulquiorra stood there dumbfounded for a moment. “Are you ready?” he finally asked.

“Oh, yeah. I’m ready. Are we ready?” she asked. We in this case meant her and his father.

“You go with him. I’m gonna close up and do what I need to do here. You did good, kid. Anytime you want to work over the summer, let me know.” Jon gave the two a wave and disappeared in the back.

Orihime turned to Ulquiorra and smiled. “How was the coffee place?”

“It was good. I didn’t have to think about anything but you and coffee,” he said. “Did you grab your purse?”

“Oh, I forgot. It’s in your dad’s office.” She turned toward the closed door and then back to Ulquiorra. “Do you think you can get it? I’d feel weird going in there with the door shut.”

The male nodded and walked behind the counter. His dad only closed the door when he was on the phone and Ulquiorra was about to lift his hand to knock on the door. It wasn’t polite to eavesdrop but he couldn’t help but stand there.

“... Yes he brought her. She’s not that bad if you give her a chance.” Pause. “Steven, he’s my child. He comes before you.” Silence. “I’m making pasta tonight. You are more than welcome to pick up some greasy bag or I don’t know why don’t you get dinner with that Tyler guy you’ve been fawning over.”

Ulquiorra’s eyebrows shot up upon hearing this.

“I know. I know. You don’t have to be jealous of Maria. She’s coming to this state to see Ulquiorra, not me. Heaven forbid someone with a vagina looks at or talks to me. Be nice to Orihime.” The threat that his father had just dealt to Steve went without saying. It was be nice and cordial or face an hours-long lecture about respect.

Ulquiorra had been victim to those many times. There was something his father hated and that was people disrespecting others. He quickly knocked before the conversation could go on, then opened the barrier. “Sorry to bother you, I know you’re probably busy but, Orihime’s purse.., bag...whatever, her stuff?”

Jon looked at his child before handing the bag over to him and then waved at him. That was a clear dismissal. Ulquiorra took it, hightailing it back to his girlfriend. “Hoo boy, let’s go,” he said steering her out the door.

Orihime smiled and looked at Ulquiorra with a gossiping eye. “What happened?”

“I’ll tell you once we’re in the car. Only a couple more steps,” he said as he pulled the keys out of his pocket. Once the car was unlocked and they both were seated inside, Ulquiorra let out a whistle. “My dad accused Steve of looking at another dude. Steve’s of course jealous of my mom. Uh, my dad really likes you and my mom’s gonna be visiting soon.”

Orihime’s eyes widened. “That is a lot of information for the what, forty-five seconds you left my side? Wow.”

“That’s like normal Friday shit for them. You think Ivan is a diva? You’ve not seen Steve. Steve is a tired toddler who refuses to go to sleep when it comes to throwing fits,” Ulquiorra stated. “How did you get to call my dad by his name? Nel has known him forever and still has to call him Mr. Cifer.”

An embarrassed, but self-satisfied, tight-lipped smile appeared on Orihime’s face for a second as she recalled how that came about. “He just told me to call him Jon; Mr. Cifer made him feel old.”

Ulquiorra’s forehead wrinkled as he heard this. There had to be something else but he wasn’t going to press the issue. “So you got on my dad’s good side.”

“Well, he said I’m better than Nel. Interpret that as you will. Personally I don’t think that is a bar that is set incredibly high so I’m taking it with a grain of salt,” she said and chuckled.

“That bar has been set so impossibly high that Nel will never be able to obtain Jon status. She has to call Steve Mr. Harris,” Ulquiorra said as he started the car and backed out of the spot they were in. “Whatever you did, awesome though. It means my dad approves of you. He said, you’re “not bad”. With Nel it was nothing but that kid’s a bad influence and she picked the roses again!”

Orihime smirked. “I think the difference is that he recognizes that I see you the way he sees you. He really, really loves you.”

This statement made Ulquiorra roll his eyes. Of course his dad loved him. It was his dad after all. “He’s supposed to love me. I’m his kid,” he said.

She smiled wide. “I suppose that’s right. Yeah, that’s right, isn’t it?” she said. She didn’t sound sad or bittersweet about it. It sounded like it was something she never much considered. Because it wasn’t.

Crap. He was a jerk. “Sorry. I kind of take the fact that I have parental figures for granted. You’re welcome to adopt Steve.” Ulquiorra smiled at her. He hoped he hadn’t been too insensitive. He forgot that Orihime had lost her parents at a young age.

“Don’t be sorry. I am the weird one with no parents. And I think I will pass on Steve. For now, anyway. I would not want to be related to Kurosaki, so....” she made a sour face as she trailed off.

Ulquiorra chuckled. “We are going to pass by my high school. Four tortured years were spent there. It’s on the way to the house.”

She smiled at that. “But it’s Friday. Are you telling me you don’t want to stop and watch the football game?” she asked sarcastically.

“I would much rather have sex with Nel than be around anyone in this town and before I would do that, I’d eat lead paint chips,” Ulquiorra said. “The answer is no.”

She chuckled. “It looks kind of like a prison. My school was no better,” she said, letting his mention of his ex pass with no more than a tiny flare of her nostrils.

As they passed the brick and cinder block building, Ulquiorra glanced at it. “Meh,” he finally managed to say. “My physics teacher was cool. The band teacher was okay.”

“You were in band? What instrument did you play?”

“Correction, I was in the orchestra band class. You can’t exactly march around with a guitar or keyboard. So, I decided to join the one that suited me better.” Ulquiorra looked ahead and flipped the turn signal to turn onto a street. “I played violin.”

Orihime’s eyes widened and she felt her belly do a little flip. “No. Way. Do you still have one? Why did you never tell me? I would love to hear you play!”

He nodded. “It hangs on the wall of my bedroom and I never made the information public because some nerdy guy who can play the violin, the piano and the guitar sounds lame. I’m a nerd.”

“Be that as it may, playing the violin launches you into next-level sexiness. You have been holding out on me.” She made a hmpf noise as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“I’ll play for you but,” he looked at her. “No recording.”

“Deal. I know you’ve got some kind of image to maintain…” she rolled her eyes and pretended to be bored with the idea. “Someday we should do like a quasi-classical arrangement of some pop songs or something. I’ll do vocals and you can do violin. It would be hilarious.”

Ulquiorra sighed. “Okay you know how you’re a classical music singer. I only play classical music on my violin. My dad loves classical music. It’s one of the reasons I wanted lessons so bad.”

She shook her head and smiled. The more she learned about the Cifer family, the more she fell in love with it. “You play me some Vivaldi and I will do whatever you want. You know; the song from the diamond commercials.”

“I was thinking Nocturne number 20 by Chopin or Adagio in G minor by Albinoni,” Ulquiorra replied as he turned onto another street. He stopped in front of a two story house with a small porch. “We are here.”

“I didn’t know you were such a romantic, Ulquiorra,” she said, thinking of his musical preferences, before the house came came into view; a tall maple had obstructed her line of sight until he car stopped and she saw it, the well-maintained exterior and landscape bearing evidence of real, live, caring occupants. “Wow. This is… This is like a real home.”

He raised his eyebrows and then had to wonder what her home had looked like. He always imagined Vega living in some American Beauty house with the perfect rose bushes and Italian silk sofas. “I’ve lived here since I was a toddler.”

Her eyes found his for a moment and softened further before she looked back up at the residence. She felt a twinge of envy. This was the kind of house she dreamed of when she was growing up, with space to play outside and a nice, tree-lined neighborhood to have little friends to play ghost in the graveyard with. She had grown up in a condo in the city, with an old woman who didn’t like to go out., at least not with her. Not unless she was showing her off.

“That house to the left,” Ulquiorra said while pointing at the French blue house, “that’s where Nel’s family lives. From what it looks like her brother is home.”

Orihime raised her eyebrows and nodded. She almost asked him if he wanted to go say hi, but she really didn’t want to. “Is he like her?”

With a shake of his head, Ulquiorra turned off the car. “No. Pesche was the class clown. Constantly doing stuff for attention with his best friend. He was a goofball. He’s five years older than me and her. After high school he went into the army and then came back. He delivers pizza for a living.”

Orihime nodded. “Sounds like he never really grew up, huh?”

Ulquiorra shrugged. He never was friendly with Pesche after he came back. The guy was still goofy but there was something about him that made the green eyed man avoid him. “You ready to come inside? I can show you around. We can get comfortable.”

“Yeah,” she chirped. She was anxious to see what the interior of the place looked like.

He got out of the car and waited for Orihime to join him. He was kind of nervous. Ulquiorra had never brought anyone home. Hopefully his dad and Steve had cleaned up. “So if it’s messy inside, just keep in mind they are two dudes.”

She laughed. “You have clearly not seen the other girls’ dorms. We can be equally as slobby. I’m sure it will be fine,” she said as they reached the stoop.

“Yeah I’ve seen messy females.” Ulquiorra gave a glance towards Nel’s place. He dug his own set of keys out of his other pocket and unlocked the door. “Welcome to the Cifer house, Veggs.”

The sight she walked into took her breath away. The place was immaculate but still warm and well-lived in. There was leather and rich woods against stylish neutral walls. Books and carefully selected knickknacks added personal touches in every direction. This was not merely a dwelling. Her initial reaction had been correct. This was a home.

She took a few steps into the foyer and turned in a slow circle, her head looking up to the light fixture and scanning the rest of her surroundings before she whispered, “Wow.”

The place looked the same as always, like a magazine photo ripped from the pages of an overly masculine pottery barn catalog. Ulquiorra shook his head. “I’ve been gone for six—seven weeks and they’ve already painted the living room. I told them I didn’t like the dark gray.”

She thought it looked fabulous. “What color was it before?”

“Burgundy? Maroon? I have no clue. Steve is the one involved in construction and interior design,” he stated. He motioned to the stairs. “Up the stairs and to the left is my room.”

As he opened the door to his room, she grinned. “This looks familiar,” she said warmly. “This is where I got to know Obscuras four.”

“Yeah, well, maybe you can get to know me better in here,” he said after she entered the bedroom and he shut the door. “What looks familiar?”

“The gray wall. The bed. The desk too. All the places that you used to record in.”

“Well, this is my sanctuary. Steve’s not allowed in here. My dad rarely steps foot in here. Only other two people have entered this room. You and Nel.”

“Well I am honored, then,” she said in a silly voice but she meant the words, and despite her irreverence, it was obvious. She ducked somewhat as she entered the space. It was almost like hallowed ground for her; a space she had long known but had never hoped to visit, the Taj Mahal or the Great Wall Of China.

Ulquiorra shifted his weight from foot to foot as she took in his room. He had to wonder what she was thinking besides that. He knew it was a boring place with not much on the walls except for a couple of black and white prints and an abstract painting his father had bought years ago. “So...” he said. “What are you really thinking?”

“I feel like I am, like I’m trespassing almost. This is surreal. I’ve watched every video you have ever posted at least ten times. To see this place in real life is blowing my mind. I love it. Thank you for sharing it with me,” she kind of murmured in an awestruck manner.

Walking up behind Orihime, Ulquiorra slid his arms around her waist. He hugged her tightly to him, burying his face into her hair. “Thank you,” he managed to get out before being choked by his emotions. Dammit. He took a deep breath, not wanting to start blubbering or pouring his heart out to her.

She turned around in his arms and hugged him back. “What are you thanking me for?” she asked after a minute.

Ulquiorra straightened and shook his head. “For being you? For being at the same university as me? For wanting to share this with me? I don’t really know. I guess… Thank you for us.”

Her chin bobbed up and down as his words moved her. She only nodded in response, then put her hands on his cheeks and pulled him into a kiss before she could start to sob. After breaking the kiss she hugged his neck tightly. “Thank you, too.”

“Hey, what are you--Orihime what’s wrong?” Ulquiorra was confused by her behavior. It looked like she had been about to cry or breakdown. “Did I say something?”

She pulled back to look him in the eyes, her own slightly wet and red around the lids. “It’s just that… what you said…” she was struggling to keep her emotions from bubbling over. “It was really touching? I feel the same way, and I never expected to find you… And… I just love you so much.” A tear slipped out of each eye. “Shit, sorry, I didn’t mean to act like a baby,” she laughed through her more sentimental emotions.

He let out an awkward laugh of his own. “Um, I mean, with the way things were headed… We would have met eventually. I don’t--It may have not been this intense or would have lasted as long if it was just online though. Does that make sense?”

She bit her lip and smiled, shaking her head. “No, not at all.” She giggled a bit and waited for clarification.

“We would have ended up like you and Brazil. Fun while it lasted but someone would have lost interest. I was always afraid of that with you. That’s why I never asked any personal information about you or for a picture. I know that doesn’t make any sense.” Ulquiorra walked over to his desk and sat down in the computer chair, biting his thumbnail. “To me it does. As soon as people sent me photos of themselves through DMs I was like oh, this person has a face then I would just nod and smile at their comments.”

She walked over to the side of his bed and sat on the edge. “I see. So you would have been a rock-n-roll heartbreaker for me, eh? Good thing then,” she said, slightly sassy. Just a smidge.

He gave her a flat stare. “I don’t plan on breaking anyone’s heart. I don’t plan on losing interest in you. That’s what I was afraid of though.”

“Hmm, like father like son, a bit. Your dad is worried about that happening. He talked to me about it today.”

“My dad talked to you? He talked to you about us?” Ulquiorra’s forehead wrinkled in confusion. “What did he say?”

“He just wanted to know what any parent would, I guess. Asked questions to see if I was a decent person, I think. Told me to not move too fast. I’m not quite sure what that means to him but I guess he just wants to make sure you don’t get hurt. Little does he know he’s got nothing to worry about as far as I’m concerned.”

Ulquiorra’s face colored slightly and his cheeks turned pink. His dad had been listening every time he had opened his mouth about Vega. The man probably digested everything he had said about Vega.Strife00 and then made his own assumptions about Ulquiorra’s intentions. His dad was good at that. The fact that he had even told his dad anything about Orihime’s online persona was a big step. “Ah,” he said.

“Ah? I guess you know better than me,” she replied.

“I might have said some things to my dad that could have been taken as I was going to throw caution to the wind?”

“You mean like, have sex? Because, in that case, sorry Jon, it’s too late, I’ve already corrupted your boy…” she said with an awkward expression.

Ulquiorra shook his head. “More of a I would do anything to be with you kind of throwing caution to the wind? I mean I was like sixteen or seventeen when I said this,” he replied.

She nodded. “If I had anyone to talk to about that kind of thing I would have probably done something similar. Thing is,” she chuckled once, “you were always the person I talked to, so I couldn’t exactly gush about you to you. At least not about, y’know, feelings and stuff.”

“C’mon we were practically gushing about each other to each other,” Ulquiorra smiled. “You could have told me anything. You can tell me anything.”

“I know. And I will. And I have as things have come up. Can’t reveal everything all at once though, it would be boring to have nothing to learn about one another.” She was careful as she said this. She didn’t want to lie. She had not told him everything, but it didn’t mean she wouldn’t. Some things were just not appropriate to talk about yet.

He was about to tease her again but Ulquiorra heard the sound of the front door opening. “I think my dad’s here. Do you want to go down and say hello or we could stay up here. Or I could play some music for you and my father while he makes pasta?”

“Oh for god’s sake you even have to ask? Option number three, please,” she said, launching to her feet.

“Go ahead and make your way downstairs. I’ve got to check my violin and bow.”

Orihime smiled at him as she left the room and walked down the steps. As she made her way to the landing, she called out, “Jon? Are you home?”

“That would be me,” the older Cifer said. “Come on down, Kiddo. You can find your way to the kitchen.”

“I’ll just follow the soothing sounds of paper bags rustling,” she said, making her way toward his voice. She entered the kitchen and smiled at her boyfriend’s father. “Ulquiorra is planning on playing for us while dinner is being prepared so he’ll be down in a bit. Can I help you with anything?”

Jon smiled at the small woman. “Grab a chopping knife and you can start cutting up this garlic. I’ll get the pasta started.”

“You got it, diced or sliced?”

“How do you like your garlic? Oooh, I could make garlic bread too. Everyone in this house will be repelled from each other and vampires!”

She smiled as though she had seen something incredibly sexy. “You have got my number. Smashed and diced it is.” Orihime grabbed a head of garlic and got to work on removing the paper and then smashed the peel off of several cloves with the side of a knife against a cutting board. “Growing up, one of the few channels my aunt allowed me to watch was the Food Network,” she prattled, just to fill the silence. “I kind of have an imaginary paternal relationship with Alton Brown.”

Jon was about to ask her if she cooked with her parents a lot but the soft sounds of a violin drifted down the stairs. He knew where Ulquiorra was. He would be standing in the hallway where the acoustics would be the best. “Alton Brown is a good culinary mentor,” he said, letting his eyes drift to the ceiling.

Her actions stopped when she heard the sounds of the bow drag across strings. She paused, setting her wrists on the counter and listening intently, waiting for a song to begin.

His father had set the pot of water on the stove and turned the burner on. “Did Ulq tell you what he was going to play?”

“He mentioned Chopin or Albinoni, but he didn’t say for sure,” she answered in a hushed voice.

The sound that was coming from the upstairs was neither of those. “Oh, he’s playing Tchaikovsky,” Jon murmured as he bent down to retrieve a pan.

A smile slowly overtook Orihime’s features as she listened to the piece begin, and then as it began to pick up in intensity she got back into chopping up the garlic. She felt like she was in a Disney movie or something. She just needed songbirds tying an apron around her waist for her and mice with floppy hats knocking over kitchen utensils and talking with speech impediments. She chuckled silently to herself at the thought.

Meanwhile Ulquiorra had his chin resting on the chin rest, his eyes closed as he walked up and down the hall and played, his bow floating over the strings while his fingers moved through the different notes. There were several times that he flubbed the music but it was okay. He hadn’t picked up or practiced on this instrument in months. As the first piece came to a close, Ulquiorra took a deep breath and started on Vivaldi’s violin concerto in A minor. He didn’t like the piece but if Orihime wanted it, she was going to get it.

Orihime recognized it immediately and grinned, looking up at Jon Cifer and then back down to her garlic. “He takes requests, I see,” she said with amusement.

Jon had to let one side of his mouth slide up into a smirk. He knew Ulquiorra detested Vivaldi but he also knew how in love his son seemed with the woman. When the violin music ended, the older man could hear footsteps coming down the stairs. As soon as Ulquiorra showed his face in the kitchen, Jon was clapping. “Nice,” he said giving his child a nod.

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes and walked over to the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water out of it. “Did you even offer her anything to drink or did you automatically put her to work?” he asked opening the container in his hand.

“Hey, now, I offered,” Orihime chided. “That was fabulous, by the way. I want to hear more.”

He gave Orihime a smile. “Maybe later when dinner is done,” Ulquiorra said. “What do you want me to do, Dad?”

“Uh, get me the...” Jon trailed off as he heard the garage door open. “Steve’s home. Get me the olive oil, check and see if we have red pepper flakes and get some of that pink salt.”

Orihime watched as Ulquiorra did his father’s bidding. She took note of the fact that his mood fell from about a seven out of ten to a four out of ten. Her own smile fell. She didn’t like anything that made Ulquiorra unhappy. If this Steve was going to try to make Ulquiorra unhappy, she was not going to make it easy for him.

“Hello lovelies! Daddy’s home!” Steve called out from the front of the house.

This made Jon and Ulquiorra groan. They had heard it enough times to make both of the Cifer’s eyes roll. “We are back here!” Jon yelled back.

“Hello,” Steve said as he stopped in the doorway. He struck a pose for a moment before continuing to speak. “Hello my darling. Hello my darling’s spawn. Hello Orihime.”

Orihime affected a poise that was usually reserved for parties she really had no business attending; ones her aunt would take her to. Ones where she would be passed around like an interesting conversation piece. Ones where she would stand gracefully and take questions with a calm sort of serenity that made her seem at once intensely interested and bored. “Hello, so lovely to see you again.”

“Pffft. No one says that to me,” Steve said as he walked over to Jon and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He merely reached over and patted Ulquiorra on the head.

Ulquiorra swatted his hand away and scowled. “Why do you have to be weird?”

Steve wrinkled his nose. “I’m not weird,” he replied.

“You’re weird, Steve.”

Orihime’s mask faded a bit. Maybe Steve had a better relationship with Ulquiorra than her boyfriend had initially let on. She decided to be guarded but to withhold judgment for now.

Jon smiled at Steve then turned to Ulquiorra. “Why don’t you show Orihime around and Steve can help me with the rest of dinner? We’ll tell you when it’s done.”

Orihime looked at Ulquiorra with a smile. She’d be glad to get out of there, honestly. The entire mood had changed the moment Steve walked through the door. She hoped things would calm down after the newcomer had a chance to shake off his day a bit.

Ulquiorra nodded and motioned for Orihime to follow him back upstairs. He let out a long sigh once they were back in his room. “I don’t like Steve all that much,” he confessed as the door shut.

“I could see that. It’s like you completely shut down once he came in. Is he that bad?”

“For the past fourteen years they’ve been on and off. Steve gets it into his head that some younger guy might be better than my dad and he ditches him. Comes crawling back some months later like a douche. Dad takes him back,” Ulquiorra said. He flopped down onto his bed and sighed again. He didn’t realize how much he missed his bed. “They’ve been together for about two years this time.”

“Is this the longest stretch you can remember?”

Ulquiorra looked at her and shook his head. “Nope. Five years and he blew it all on some nineteen year old stripper. They were broken up for about a year then the day I posted the first video… I found out my dad and Steve were back together.”

Orihime sighed heavily and sat beside him, putting her palm on the knee that was closest to her. “You love your dad. I don’t blame you. I just met your dad and I am already pissed about it. Why do you think he keeps taking him back?”

“Financial stability that my dad has. Uh, Steve says my dad is pretty hot among other things. He says that my dad is an anchor. He takes charge. He knows he’s the alpha male,” Ulquiorra said as he put his hand on Orihime’s leg.

“Yeah, but why does your dad take Steve back?”

Ulquiorra thought about her question for a moment. “Uh,” he said, drawing out the sound. “I don’t know. My dad isn’t exactly an open book about things.”

Orihime nodded. “Apple doesn’t fall very far from the tree, sometimes, huh? I think you’re pretty open with me but in general, you’re pretty reserved. Anyway, even though you don’t know how your dad feels, I guess you have to just respect his choices, don’t you? That can’t be easy.”

“You know more about me than my mother does,” Ulquiorra said before he sat up. He leaned over and gave Orihime a kiss. “Because of the whole Dad and Steve situation, it’s kind of made me draw back from my dad.”

She knew what he meant. “It’s hard to be close to someone when you see them hurt but you can’t help. Sometimes it tears you up. I know how that feels,” she said, thinking of his relationship with Nel. “It’s more complicated because he’s your parent though, I think. It’s not your job to take care of him, but you probably want to anyway.”

He shrugged again. Ulquiorra didn’t really know what he wanted to do. He just knew that Steve was toxic and had no place in their lives. “My dad knew I was unhappy with Nel. He put rules into place that would minimize our contact. I wish I could do the same thing with Steve. Look at the guy. He’s a walking… He’s a fucking idiot.”

Orihime had to smile at Ulquiorra’s assessment. “Well, I have only known him for a cumulative forty-five seconds or so, but I can’t say I disagree at this point. Time will tell.”

Time would only strengthen the idea. Ulquiorra could hear the raised voices downstairs and the clank of pans. Steve and his dad were arguing. “Sometimes having parents can suck,” he mumbled.

She nodded and rubbed his spine a bit. “Yeah, nobody’s got it easy, do they?”

“So what did you think of the violin thing?”

Her eyes widened and she smiled. “It. Was. Magical. It was like… It did things to me.” she chuckled. She knew it wasn’t perfect or anything, but hearing classical music, and the pieces he picked, showed her a new side of him. “I liked seeing and hearing a new side of you.”

He smiled. “So want to hear one more piece?”

“Yes. I want to hear a lot more than one, but I’ll settle for one for now,” she said, reclining back onto her elbows.

Ulquiorra walked over to where the violin hung on the wall and took it down again. He also grabbed the bow that hung beside it. It sucked that he didn’t have his keyboard here but he would make do with the recording that he had made earlier that year. He turned on his computer that sat at his desk and waited for it to boot up. He also turned on the speakers and the surround sound. Once everything was set up, he turned and looked at Orihime. “You know how you mentioned you liked Cloud?” Ulquiorra asked.

“Yeah?” She wasn’t sure where he was going with this.

“I think everyone has a video game character they fall in love with. This is mine,” he clicked the mouse and the tinkling of a piano filled the room. Ulquiorra turned his back to Orihime and placed the violin under his chin, taking a deep breath and counting the measure of rest. When it was time he placed the bow of the violin on the strings and started playing.

Orihime’s smile grew slowly on her face as she recognized Aerith’s theme from Final Fantasy VII. She chuckled silently, once. She was a Tifa fan. Then she let the theme roll over her and her smile expanded into a relaxed, open-mouthed grin as she fell back onto Ulquiorra’s bed and closed her eyes, humming along to the melody quietly, furrowing her brows when it came to the dissonant crescendo phrase and relaxing when it resolved back to consonance.

He played it perfectly because he loved the melody so much. It invoked so many memories from his childhood and playing games with his dad and Nel. It was a time when things were simpler. His arm moved fluidly allowing the bow to brush against the strings. The last note echoed as he brought then bow down.

Orihime turned her head toward him and slowly opened her eyes. “You’re perfect,” she said softly, shaking her head slightly with the same smile she had as he played. “That was beautiful.”

“Eh, I could improve on things,” Ulquiorra said, as he started shutting off the speakers. He rehung the violin and the bow and sighed. “Thank you though. I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

“So, Aerith, huh? No love for my girl, Tifa?” she teased.

“Nah, I didn’t like her. Aerith saved the world. What did Tifa do besides try to get in Cloud’s pants?”

She furrowed her brows. “Um, took care of everyone on a daily basis? Provided moral and combat support? Had awesome hair and a great set of tits? What’s not to love?”

Ulquiorra had a grin on his face. “She was fanservice,” he stated.

Orihime scoffed. Loudly. “Are you calling me fanservice?” she asked, grabbing her breasts for emphasis.

“Yeah, you’re my fanservice.” He walked over to her and kissed Orihime. “Aerith was well endowed too.”

“I relate better to Tifa,” she said with an unenthusiastic face. “Always there in someone bigger and better’s shadow. Well, until lately,” she explained and then smiled again. “Sounds like they stopped fighting.”

Ulquiorra tilted his head and listened. It was quiet downstairs. Then again, Steve and his dad always went quiet when he played. “You want to go downstairs and check? Even if they’re not done I can show you the rest of the house.”

“Okay, but first,” she stood and kissed him. “Thanks for the Vivaldi.”

“I hate Vivaldi,” he said before returning the kiss. “It’s overdone.”

She shook her head with her arms around his neck. “Hipster. Let’s go.”

“I am not.” Ulquiorra pouted and left his room. He stomped down the hall loud enough to announce that he was moving through the house. He heard the quiet voices of his dad and Steve in the kitchen. They had gone from fighting to discussing things. The voices stopped once he entered the room. “Is it ready?” Ulquiorra asked.

Jon and Steve looked uncomfortable. “Uh, almost. Whatever you were playing was beautiful.”

“Thanks,” he said. Ulquiorra eyed his father and then the other man in the room with a harsh judging eye. “Are you two going to break up again?”

“What?” Steve asked. He looked offended.

His father sighed. “It’s none of your business, Ulq. I’m not going to talk about it with you.”

Orihime quietly took his hand and squeezed it out of sight of Jon and Steve. This was awkward for her; she couldn’t imagine how uncomfortable it was for him. “Um, would you mind showing me the backyard?” she asked quietly.

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes at his dad and then pulled Orihime to the backdoor, shaking his head. He really hated that his father wouldn’t talk to him about anything but expected him to be forthcoming with information. Once they were standing in the yard, Ulquiorra spoke to Orihime. “Sorry about that. Had I known Steve was going to pull his bullshit I would have said screw it.”

“Don’t worry about it,” she said, bringing his hand to her mouth and kissing the knuckle on his thumb. “If we were at Auntie Claire’s, things would have been either icy cold or we’d both be out on our asses after a thorough tongue-lashing. At least your dad is trying. This is a nice backyard. Wanna lie in the hammock until they get their heads out of their asses?” she suggested, looking at the object in question.

He pulled her to the hammock and carefully held it while Orihime climbed onto it. He then followed her. “Your Auntie Claire is a bitch and she can lick my balls. There’s nothing wrong with us having a relationship or you doing what you want to do with your life.” Ulquiorra threaded their hands together. “Why is she so against you living your life?”

Orihime sighed. It was long and drawn-out. “I really don’t know. I think she feels like I’m this… unrefined, hypersexualized song monkey who needs to be lead through a series of tricks like a show dog, otherwise I’ll end up embarrassing her. She acts like if she can’t mold me into this younger image of herself, she’ll have failed somehow. She doesn’t see me as my own person.”

“Tch, she’s the one that attached her name to yours. So if you do fail and take her down it’s her own fault. You’re not going to fail though. We’re going places. We’re going to become famous. I’m going to make sure of that.” Ulquiorra kissed her knuckles and smiled. “I wish my dad and Steve would quit doing this. I know it’s his life but it’s mine too and Steve affects it.”

“I get it. This is… he was your dad, first. He will be your dad until you die. Steve can come and go as he pleases. Of course it affects you.” She twisted her mouth around. “You know, fame may or may not be great, but I don’t think I need it to be happy. I just like performing. I like shows like the one at Sado’s. I liked the one at the hotel. I liked doing the garage shows and I even like doing the stupid school musicals and the concert class would probably be fun too if it wasn’t tied to Claire and Aizen. I like seeing people enjoy what I’m doing, I guess.”

He raised an eyebrow. “So you like performing but not the recognition from it?”

“Well, recognition is nice, I won’t lie. But it’s nothing compared to that nervous feeling you get before you step into the lights or the love from an audience. It’s about as close to falling in love that I’ve ever felt before I met you.”

Ulquiorra glanced at Orihime. “I was pretty calm the night we performed. It was nice but then Sado had to open his mouth about me singing Hallelujah and… When you left the stage I got nervous.”

“I could tell,” she said, smiling. “You really have a gift, though. Everyone was mesmerized, me included. They all felt you touch them. I wish I had a drop of your gift,” she sighed in a way that showed she was not actually envious or disappointed. She was proud and awed.

“Want to know a secret?” He asked still looking at her. When she nodded, Ulquiorra said, “Find a song you really love and sing it your own way. Put all of your heart into it.”

She smiled back. “I have to find my song, huh?” Another sigh. “Dein Blaues Auge isn’t it, that’s for sure. Oh well. I’ll find it, I’m sure.”

His mouth quirked up at that. “I’ve sung a lot of my favorites but I’ve not done my absolute favorites yet. I’m still trying to perfect them.”

“Oh? What are they?” she was animated with the questions. “I would know them, wouldn’t I?”

“It’s too many to list but you sang one of them pretty well.”

“Oh? Which one is that?”

“As your four-eyed friend puts it, the whore song.” Ulquiorra smirked and then dropped the expression for a more stoic face.

Orihime shook her head. “He is so transparent.”

Ulquiorra’s mouth twitched. “How do you figure he’s transparent?”

“Oh come on. He thinks if he hangs around enough eventually I’ll just offer him a hummer or something.”

“Oh,” Ulquiorra frowned. If all these guys and chicks were calling Orihime a whore and thinking she just handed out sexual favors… No his girlfriend wasn’t like that. “You’re not are you?” he teased.

“What? No! Why does everyone always think that about me? Do I have slut tattooed on my forehead?”

He shifted his weight and almost flipped the hammock. “No! I was joking! You were probably a good girl and everyone is jealous of you because you’re a good person with the perfect boyfriend.”

“Well… I’ll agree with the perfect boyfriend part. But I’m not that good of a person,” she said.

“LOVEBIRDS! It’s time to eat!” Steve yelled.

Ulquiorra groaned. “Of course Steve would interrupt us. We can talk about this later, right?”

“Yeah.” she said. She wasn’t thrilled to have this conversation.

He looked at her with a frown. “What?”

“It’s… I’ll tell you later.”

Ulquiorra hung back a moment before he shook his head. It was true, he didn’t know much about Orihime and her past. All he knew was what Vega had told him and that could fill a page of a notebook. They didn’t know a lot about each other's personal lives while they were internet friends.

Jon had set the table and was placing a small basket of garlic bread on the table when he walked into the house. Steve was looking at wine bottles. Ulquiorra sneered slightly at his father's boyfriend. His dad gave him a hard stare. “I didn’t know if you two wanted to sit together, so I changed the chairs around,” Jon said.

A straight brow raised and the musician shrugged. We usually sit by each other, so it’s fine. Really—“

“Jon let Ulq have his fun by sitting by his girlfriend. He decided to be a breeder, so we’ll have to get used to the idea of grandkids.” Steve set the bottle of white wine on the table along with two wineglasses. “Probably sooner rather than later.”

Orihime curled her lip for just a moment. She had met guys like Steve before. She had performed with them and studied under them and listened to them blow smoke up her aunt’s ass and then totally badmouth her once she left the room. “Not very likely, Steve. I have plans,” she said, looking him directly in the eye with an otherwise serene expression, challenging him to say anything else with only her unwillingness to break her gaze.

A tiny hmph left Steve. He folded his arms over his chest and then gave Jon a pursed lip pout. Ulquiorra watched his father fight a smile. The older man must have liked Orihime more than he let on. “Can we sit down? I’m hungry,” he said.

“Of course, of course. Steve, you’re by me. Orihime, please sit,” Jon said as he pulled out one of the chairs. “Help yourselves and enjoy.”

She smiled at Ulquiorra’s father and took her seat. “Everything looks so good!” she said, folding her hands in front of her and breathing in the garlic smell. “No vampires tonight.”

Ulquiorra smiled as he sat down beside Orihime. “My dad loves Italian food.”

“Guilty,” Jon said as he nodded. He had some pasta on the plate in front of him and handed Steve the bread basket.

Orihime watched as they dished out the food, observing the dynamics and the way things were done. It struck her as odd how they seemed to fly in the face of the conventions she was used to. Jon served himself first, then Steve served himself, then Ulquiorra, who passed it to her first and then took it back after she had taken some. Apparently things were done according to pecking order instead of hospitality in this house. She wondered how that might have affected her boyfriend, and why he seemed to have more manners than the more established adults in the household.

Ulquiorra gave her a smile. “Do you want garlic bread since our esteemed hosts are rude and didn’t offer you any first?”

She chuckled. “Oh yes. It’s carbfest Friday, afterall.”

Jon looked like he’d been scolded. “I apologize, Orihime. I’m so used to it being the three of us…”

She smiled at him. “No, no, it’s nice to sit down to a family-style dinner. It’s much nicer than what I’m used to.”

Ulquiorra took a sip of water from the glass in front of him. “Orihime’s parents died when she was young. Her aunt raised her. She was some semi-famous singer,” he said quietly. He watched as his father’s eyes went wide.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Jon said, wiping his mouth with the cloth napkin. “Uh, so besides the internet, how did you two meet? Did you plan to meet?”

Orihime waved in front of her mouth with a finger, indicating that she would speak when she finished chewing her bite. A moment later she answered, “No. It was in English class. We were told to find a small group to work with for a Shakespeare project. I had arrived at the last minute and everyone around me had already made acquaintances and paired up. He was the only person left. He looked at me like he hoped I would burst into flames. I ignored that.” She smiled after her explanation and took a bite of the pasta, interjecting with an appreciative eyeroll and a quiet “Mmm”.

“There is more to this story, isn’t there?” Steve asked.

Ulquiorra nodded. “We were paired up for speech and then another class. I didn’t think much of her because she had been late to each class.”

“I wasn’t late! I was there just on time. Like… right on time,” she said, slightly embarrassed, then shoveled more pasta into her mouth.

Jon and Ulquiorra laughed. It sounded almost identical. Their smiles were practically the same. “Well I went out running the first weekend on campus and ran into Orihime--”

“You mean you literally ran into her?” This question came from Jon.

“No, I was walking into a gym and she started asking questions. We made conversation.”

“I told him I was looking for a pianist and he said he played, so I offered him to come rehearse with me to see if it would work. I needed someone to accompany me for a recital,” Orihime added.

Steve’s forehead wrinkled. “Wait, when did you tell her you were Obscuras IV?”

“I never did,” Ulquiorra said as he twirled pasta onto his fork. He looked over at Orihime and smiled.

“No, I figured it out when he was playing. I asked him to play whatever; he had mentioned he didn’t really play a lot of classical music so I told him I was also looking for someone to do coffee house gigs with. He sang two songs that he had put on YouTube. After the first song I thought it was just a crazy, uncanny similarity. After the second one I knew. I didn’t say anything though because I’m an awkward weirdo.”

The smile turned into a blush. “I, uh, sang Hallelujah for her,” Ulquiorra said.

“Awww,” both older men said in unison.

Orihime smiled, eyes darting between the three men, wondering if there would be any other commentary about the song choice.

“And?”

Ulquiorra scowled. “And nothing. I posted a pic on Instagram and had a lapful of female after that.”

“Oh come on,” Orihime said, crossing her arms in front of her and pursing her lips. “Are you forgetting about my awesome rendition of All My Life and how you nearly fell over backward from it and then went on and on about me, to me?”

He looked at her. “She used riddles to tell me on Instagram who she was. I figured it out. We exchanged pictures. Then we made out. Nel walked in. We’ve been together ever since the first week of school.”

Orihime raised her brows and nodded, tucking back into her food after Ulquiorra’s explanation was found to be satisfactory.

Steve was the only one stupid enough to unpack that baggage. “Nel walked in? Oh my god! How are you still roaming this earth, Orihime?”

Orihime smirked. “I may be small but I am savage.”

Ulquiorra gave a snort of laughter. “Nel knows I’m off limits. She’s apologized and stuff but she outed me. She revealed to everyone who I was when she knew the rules.”

“So, uh, did you two...” Steve didn’t elaborate because he shoved a fork of pasta into his mouth and smiled.

“That’s none of our business Steven,” Jon said. “So what do you study Orihime?”

She suppressed most of a small, nasal sigh. “Classical voice.”

“I supposed you’ve not picked a major yet, have you Ulquiorra?” His father asked.

“I don’t plan on staying. I’m signing a contract and going to L.A. when the semester ends,” he answered. Ulquiorra could feel his dad’s gaze on him and he did not lift his eyes from the plate.

“I see.”

Orihime felt very uncomfortable. She thought to interrupt or offer up the fact that Ulquiorra had told her he planned to continue his education in California, but it was really between him and his father and she felt she’d be overstepping her boundaries to interfere. She just pushed noodles around on her plate.

Ulquiorra sighed, finally mustering the courage to look at his dad. “What? I’m going to continue taking classes.”

“I’m just wondering what you’re going to do if you fail and nothing comes of this,” Jon replied. The two Cifers were ignoring the other occupants of the room, having a silent stare off. It was Jon that looked away first. “I don’t want you to be disappointed when your mother fails to be a mom.”

“I’m not expecting much out of her, Dad.”

Orihime made eye contact with Steve, and offered a slight eyebrow raise in solidarity on the presumption of a shared feeling of wishing they could slither out of the room unnoticed.

“Wine, darling?” Steve asked Jon, picking up the bottle and pouring himself a glass. He reached over Jon and grabbed the other wineglass. When the glass was half-full, Steve handed it back. “Drink up, sweetie.”

Two pairs of green eyes, one more hazel than the other, slid over to stare at Steve and his antics. Jon cleared his throat and nodded his thanks at the other man. “Well, let’s enjoy the rest of dinner, okay?”

“Yeah. This is really, really good, Jon. What’s it called?” Orihime asked, trying to change the subject.

Jon smiled, “Pasta aglio and some other italian words. It’s basically just olive oil, garlic, red pepper flakes and salt. I like to add a dash of lemon juice to it also but I didn’t tonight.”

“I’d like to try it that way, too, but this is so moreish. As soon as I live in a place with a kitchen I’d like to try making it.”

“Anytime you kiddos want to, you can come here and stay the weekend and use the kitchen,” Jon said. He picked up the wineglass and took a sip. “I enjoyed cooking with Ulquiorra when he was here.”

“Dad!”

Orihime’s eyes drifted toward Ulquiorra’s with a questioning expression. Was he embarrassed by this? She thought it was sweet.

“You didn’t tell her?” Steve looked scandalized.

“Steve!”

“Didn’t tell me what?” Orihime asked, sharing her confused expression with the rest of the table occupants.

“I like to bake.”

“And this is scandalous because…?” she trailed off for someone to fill in the blank. She didn’t grow up thinking there was anything weird about that. The women in her aunt’s social set didn’t bake, so she didn’t think of it as a particularly feminine pursuit.

Ulquiorra’s mouth twisted to one side. Having a gay father made him a laughing stock. When people found out that he liked to cook and bake he was bullied and people made fun of him. That was on top of being a band nerd, liking chess and plants. “I like doing it. It’s soothing. There’s something cathartic about beating the hell out of some dough for bread,” he said.

“Well, good to know. I’ll be sure to steer clear if I hear the sounds of fists against watered-down flour,” she said and chuckled.

Both Jon and Ulquiorra looked offended at this.  
S


	20. One Foot In

The dinner went well. It tasted great. Ulquiorra helped his dad clean up the table and then loaded the dishwasher. He told Orihime to just sit there and talk to him while they worked. It was a normal thing for father and son to clean up together. They had been doing it for years. Jon had instilled a good work ethic in Ulquiorra. The OCDs of being a neat freak were just a bonus. After everything was done, he decided to show her the rest of the house.

 

They went through the living room and formal dining room. They went through Jon’s study/office and into a room that held bookcases, an armchair and a baby grand piano. Plants were dotted around the space to. “This is what Steve calls the music room,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“I love it,” she said in hushed tones as her eyes swept the room and its contents, then arced up to the decorative ceiling medallions and light fixtures.  “This is fantastic. Do you play in here often?”

 

He shrugged. “The acoustics are okay,” Ulquiorra answered. “I like how the hallway sounds. Less echo. I used to play in here when I was younger; decided when I became a teenager that I was too cool for the music room.” 

 

“Nobody is too cool for this room,” she muttered quietly, and then sang a tone and a triad in succession at a medium volume, testing the acoustics of the room.  “The echo in here is a classical singer’s friend. Fuller sound with less effort,” she laughed as if that was a slightly shameful thing to admit.

 

“When you’re learning how to play violin at a young age… No one likes that screechy sound,” he replied. “You know the sound that’s at the end of Glycerine?”

 

She cringed.  “I know exactly what you mean.”

 

“My dad would sit in his office and do his books while I practiced. Then I wanted piano lessons. My mom bought that,” Ulquiorra stated, gesturing to the glossy black piano in the middle of the room.

 

“That is lovely.  Reminds me of Claire’s.”

 

Ulquiorra shrugged. He thought it was okay. “If you’d like to play it, you’re more than welcome to. I haven’t really touched it since I got my keyboard. It’s more of a talking point during parties.”

 

“I could use a bit of practice,” she said, sitting down and opening the cover over the keyboard.  She adjusted the position of her seat and began to play a simple-sounding contemporary piece with angular intervals and a tripping, syncopated rhythm in mixolydian mode.  It was short.    

 

“Do you mind if I practice one more?  I’m a bit nervous about singing here but my recital is on Thursday…”

 

“Please,” Ulquiorra said as he walked over to the armchair. He sat down and watched Orihime, mesmerized by her. “I could sit here and watch you all night.”

 

Her eyes slid over to him as she smiled and blushed, then her eyes closed as she began to play a simplified version of the already simple accompaniment to Silent Noon, and sang in a more restrained volume than she would normally use.  The combination of these elements, in this room, made it feel very intimate. She felt kind of vulnerable and exposed; without the cover of exacting technique and projection, her feelings were on full display. Orihime had feelings about Silent Noon.  It wasn’t that the poetic, pastoral lyrics related to her life on a literal level; it was the sentiment behind them that pulled at her heartstrings.  

 

By the time she was finished, her cheeks were a bit flushed and her voice cracked a bit before she could finish the ring on the high note of the final phrase, “when twofold silence was the song--” before the resolving to, “the song of love”. She looked down, and her breath shuddered a bit as she played the final low chords of the accompaniment.  She kept her eyes closed for a few more breaths.

 

“I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me,” she said, wiping her eyes and shaking her head after the moment had passed.

 

Standing slowly, Ulquiorra crossed the room and bent down to kiss Orihime. He ran his fingers through her hair, trying to pull her closer to him. He was interrupted by a small, “Ahem.”

 

“Why don’t you play something for her, Ulq,” Jon said.

 

He looked at his father and then at the woman who he had just been kissing. “Do you want to hear me play?” he asked.

 

She smiled and nodded, standing from the piano bench and taking the seat that Ulquiorra had occupied.

 

Sitting there for a moment, Ulquiorra thought about what he wanted to play. A lot of piano adaptations of songs went through his mind. He wondered if he could do one of his dad’s favorite songs.

 

He started playing the beginning of Smashing Pumpkins’ Disarm. He had told Orihime that it was a song that was meant to be played in an intimate setting… It didn’t get any more intimate than this. He took a deep breath as he began to sing. “Disarm you with a smile, cut you like you want me to...” 

 

Orihime smiled and suppressed the urge to sing along.  This was one of her favorite songs. She had never heard Ulquiorra sing it though, and she was transfixed.  She closed her eyes and focused on his voice.

 

The smile on his father’s face became bigger as he listened. Jon leaned against the open door frame and crossed his arms over his chest. It made Ulquiorra happy to see he could still make his dad happy with music. He turned his attention to Orihime. He was getting close to the end of the song, his fingers hitting the white and black keys with force. “My love, I send this smile over to you. The killer in me is the killer in you." He repeated the last two lines several times and then let the music fade out. 

 

The dark-haired musician looked back but his dad wasn’t standing there any longer. He must have left the room.

 

Orihime waited until the last of the vibrations from the piano faded away to open her eyes, and then she shivered.  “I love that song. I love you. Thank you,” she murmured with a dreamy-eyed face.

 

“Thank you,” he said. Ulquiorra stood up and closed the lid over the keys again. “It’s one of my dad’s favorite songs. I’ve grown to like it over the years. It sounds better on guitar. Maybe one of these days I’ll play it for you. Do you want to go upstairs and maybe play some video games or you can snoop through my stuff?”

 

She grinned and offered him a hand to pull her out of the armchair.  “Sounds good.”

 

***

 

The next morning Ulquiorra sat with Orihime on the couch. He had gotten his photo album down from one of the shelves. “If I show you this, there will be no squealing. No awwws. No...”

 

Jon came through the room. “No endearments, ain’t that right Ulqui?”

 

“Get out of here Dad!”

 

Orihime’s face contorted. “Nel called you that… I know, but  _ why? _   It sounds so… Icky.  Your actual name is so great.  Ulq is great. Why?” she cringed and shook imaginary creepy crawlies off of her.

 

Jon sat in one of the armchairs and shook his head. “Nel could not say Ulquiorra’s name, so we had to figure out how she could say his name. She used to call him Key-key or something. Ulq did not like that, so we found something else that worked for her. She had a bad lisp when she was young.”

 

“Hmm,” Orihime nodded with rising inflection.  “That’s rough. She seems recovered now, though, huh?”

 

Ulquiorra sat there and rolled his eyes. “Do I have your agreement with this Veggs?”

 

She took a very deep breath.  “I will do my best. You didn’t say anything about biting myself or falling down, right?”

 

He sighed and handed the album over to her. “Try to contain yourself,” Ulquiorra admonished. He then smirked at her. “My dad doesn’t need to shampoo the couch.”

 

“Well then… I will pretend I didn’t hear that,” she said as she opened the album and immediately had to bite the inside of her cheek, hard.  “You were an exceptionally pleasant-looking child, Ulquiorra,” she said in an exaggeratedly flat tone. Her body shook slightly, trying to contain a giggle.

 

Jon huffed. “You’re so mean to her! Let her express the joy at being the only female to see these.” He stood and then immediately flopped down beside Orihime. “He was so tiny. I felt like I was going to break him when Maria and I brought him home.”

 

Orihime didn’t coo or aww.  She simply smiled and touched the picture’s edge gently.  “He really was. So much hair, too. I’m not really into babies much, but this is a cute-ass baby.  Pardon my language,” she chuckled at her own slip.

 

“His mother… His mother swore he was going to come out covered in fur. He gets the hair from me,” Jon said. He pointed at a picture. “This is his first bath. Somehow he managed to pee on Maria.”

 

Ulquiorra groaned and buried his face into his hands. Why was his father divulging this information?

 

“I am not surprised.  I used to babysit for the couple in the condo across the hall from ours.  You could not let air touch that penis for more than one-point-one seconds without needing rain gear.  It’s a thing, apparently. That or you and Ferris Conrad have a special peculiarity in common.”

 

“I assure you it’s a male thing,” Jon said.

 

“You’re shortening my life span by telling her these things,” Ulquiorra stated from behind his hands.

 

“Pfft. Hush.” Jon looked at the pictures on the page and pointed to another one. “This one he was learning to crawl and went face first into the carpet. He had a bit of road rash on his nose because he wouldn’t pick his head up.”

 

“Aw--” she stopped herself short.  “Sorry,” she said to Ulquiorra before looking back down. “Wow, Jon… You two are like, nearly carbon copies of one another,” she said, looking at a picture of a much younger Jon Cifer holding Ulquiorra’s hands as they practiced walking.  “Look at his little scowl. So serious.”

 

“Maria said I cloned myself.”

 

Another sigh. “Fine squeal away,” Ulquiorra said to Orihime.

 

She did. “Oh my  _ god _ you are so stinkin’ cute!  I’m dying. Look at the little knuckle dimples!” Another whine. “I mean, you’re cute now, too…” she said as though it were some kind of consolation.

 

Jon smiled at his son who just glared. “He won’t let me put the really good photos in here. There’s ones where he has several chins and leg rolls. He was a chunky kid until he found out he could run.”

 

Orihime rolled her eyes a bit.  “Yeah… nothing to worry about there.  I was a chunky kid until I realized that just because I  _ could _ eat an entire pizza doesn’t mean that I  _ should _ .”

 

The older Cifer scowled. “You are a twig. I don’t believe it,” Jon said. He pointed to another photo. “This picture was the day we arrived here. I took a picture of Ulq and Nel together. I have others of him in front of the house. Do you remember anything from that time?”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “All I remember is that I could go outside and run around. The girl next door was annoying,” he replied. “Don’t you have cupcakes to deliver? Or something to bake at the shop?”

 

His father sighed. “Fine, fine. I’ll leave you two alone. If I don’t get back before you leave, it was nice getting to know you Orihime. Ulquiorra, you need to call or text me more often.” With that Jon stood and disappeared through a door.

 

“I’m jealous.”  It was a true, she was, but she didn’t hold it against him.  “He and you have such a strong bond.”

 

Taking the photo album from Orihime and placing it on the coffee table, Ulquiorra slipped his arms around the redhead. “I’m sorry. If I knew... ”

 

“No.  Don’t be sorry.  I never knew. I want to know.  I’m really glad you brought me here.”

 

That brought a small smile to his face. “Like I said you can always have Steve. He’s up for adoption. He’s not house broken though. Feel free to beat him if he pees on the floor.”

 

“Uh, no.  Do I look like the mommy of a princess to you?” she smirked.  Then she felt guilty. She wouldn’t want Jon or Steve to hear her say something like that.   Even if Steve totally deserved it.

 

“You could be. I mean one of these days. Like I don’t know fifteen years down the road,” Ulquiorra said in a rushed manner, feeling embarrassed.. “Don’t worry about them. Steve’s at work.”

 

Orihime laughed and looked up at the ceiling, squinting an eye and doing the math in her head.  “Fifteen years, eh? That puts me at thirty-four… Right? Mental addition is not my strong suit,” she laughed again.  “Maybe a little younger than that would be better. I don’t know.” She didn’t seem overly concerned or invested in what she was saying.

 

He looked at her with a smile, then said, “I hate to disappoint my dad and Steve but I don’t know if they’ll ever be grandfathers. It’s not on my bucket list. It might come up after the current one is finished but at the moment, no thanks.”

 

She raised her eyebrows and nodded nonchalantly. “Yeah… I wasn’t lying about not really being into babies.  I mean some are cute but it’s not like… Some girls really  _ really  _ like them.  I don’t need to touch every chubby lump of flesh I see.  It’s weird to me.”

 

Ulquiorra chuckled and kissed her temple. “Nel screams when kids get around her. She doesn’t like small children; we’re talking like from fourteen years old and younger.”

 

Orihime furrowed her brows.  “Why? That’s weird. I mean, that’s when they are fun and interactive. Ferris Conrad had an older sister, Harriet, and she would tell me stories and try to put ribbons in my hair.  She was about four, I think. She was a delight.”

 

“Dunno. She just avoids younger kids,” Ulquiorra replied. “I’ve never really been around babies.”

 

Orihime shrugged.  “I’m surprised they don’t avoid her.” She sighed and shook her head then.  “Sorry. I mean, I know she’s not your favorite either but she was your best friend and I keep badmouthing her to you.”

 

“It’s fine. No one around here liked Nel. She’s loud. She’s pushy. She’s… I’m not sure what the word for her is exactly but my dad didn’t like her. Steve definitely didn’t like her. Especially after puberty hit and she was constantly wearing bathing suits.”

 

“You liked her, though. I’m not trying to make you feel weird or defend yourself.  I just realized it’s kind of insensitive of me to do that.”

 

It was but Ulquiorra wasn’t going to tell her she was wrong. Orihime had her reasons for not liking Nel. “Did you want to go to Sado’s tonight?”

 

“Sure.”

 

“It’s Saturday, we should get going soon. The whole drive into the city and I’m sure you need to get ready,” Ulquiorra rambled on. He didn’t want to go back but he didn’t want to stay here any longer.

 

“Okay, I’ll drive back.  And what’s wrong with my outfit?” she teased.  She was wearing what she would wear to the gym but with a hoodie.

 

Ulquiorra’s mouth slowly spread into a smile. “You look fine,” he told her before he kissed her. “But maybe--” he fiddled with the zipper of the hoodie. “You can show a bit more skin? Maybe something with easy access? I remember what you were doing the first time we went to Sado’s.”

 

“Oh,  I gotcha.  _ Now _ you want to show me off.  That can be arranged,” she bit her lip and smiled.  “Shall we, then?”

 

***

 

They didn’t go to Sado’s right away once they arrived back at the campus. They had gotten stuck in traffic and ended up singing along to whatever song came up on the streaming music app. 

 

“We could go to Sados tomorrow? See if he has any openings to perform next week?” Ulquiorra asked. “Do you want to go tonight?”

 

“I don’t really care.  It’s getting late. We could finish Harry Potter.”

 

“You know what happens when we watch those movies,” Ulquiorra said, but smiled. “We could try another Rickman movie.”

 

“Okay…Do you have one in mind?” she asked, curious about Ulquiorra’s taste in non-Harry Potter movies.

 

He shrugged. “Could watch Hitchhiker's Guide?”

 

“We could.  Or we could watch one where he’s a bit more studly.”

 

Ulquiorra snorted with laughter. “Die Hard then?”

 

“Yessss,” she answered with a wide grin.

 

The green eyed male put his arms around his girlfriend and kissed her as they entered his dorm. “Do you have a studly Mr. Rickman movie?”

 

“Yes, but you’d probably hate it.  It’s super duper girly.”

 

“Love…Actually?”

 

“Nope.  I don’t like him in that movie.  He cheats on his wife.”

 

Ulquiorra scoffed. “The character buys a necklace. How is that cheating? There was no other contact.”

 

“It’s implied that he accepts sexual favors from her.  And even if he didn’t, he bought the necklace with the intent to get sexual favors in return.  It’s a betrayal.”

 

“I liked how Andrew Lincoln’s character confessed his love to Natalie Portman.” Ulquiorra didn’t remember the actress’s name.

 

“You mean slackjaw Keira Knightley?” she rolled her eyes.  “You’re right though, that was a good scene. I liked all the scenes with whats-his-face… the guy who got caught with a hooker when we were little.”

 

“Hugh Jackass?”

 

“Yeah, you know who I mean.  He may be a jackass but I loved his character in that movie.  And his love interest was adorable.”

 

Ulquiorra smirked. “You know you are adorable, too. I liked how you seemed to charm my father.”

 

She laughed.  “Well, it wasn’t hard to do; he is charming, too.  It was weird watching you together. At times it was like seeing into your future.  I mean, your smiles and your laughs… I stopped breathing at one point because I couldn’t believe how similar they were.”

 

He nodded. It wasn’t the first time he had heard this. “My mom says she was just an incubator for my dad’s clone. My grandma says I’m the spitting image of him.”

 

Orihime nodded.  “Yeah,” she smiled and sighed.  “I think you’ll age like him too, you lucky bastard,” she chuckled. “I still say if he wasn’t gay and if I was into older guys you’d have a run for your money.”

 

His nose wrinkled. “You’ve seen another side of me,” Ulquiorra said. “Impressions?”

 

She took a deep breath.  It wasn’t simple. “A mixed bag.  I mean, onto the pile of reasons that make me love you even more, add the violin playing, the baking, the love you have for your father.  In the other corner, in the tiny smattering of reasons to be wary of you, is the resolved disdain you have for Steve. But on the opposite side of that coin is the protective instinct you have for your dad and your relationship with him, so it balances itself out.”

 

Ulquiorra was silent as they rode the elevator up to his floor. When he unlocked the door to his room, he wasn’t surprised to see it empty. “My disdain for Steve is a deep rooted thing. I haven’t liked him since—well since I told you. My dad is all I have.”

 

She nodded.  “I don’t blame you.  It’s just that you’re kind of ferocious.  I’ve never seen that side of you before. Anyway, the movie I meant to before we got side-tracked was Sense and Sensibility.  Stud-ly,” she said, flopping down on his bed. She didn’t want him dwelling on Steve so she changed the subject.

 

Orihime had never seen a fight between him and Nel. That was probably a good thing. He tended to bare teeth and claws when confronted or backed into a corner. “Austen?” He groaned. “You just like it because of the whole Victorian era.”

 

“Nope. The fashion is dreadful. The customs and sanitation of the day were abhorrent.  It’s the feeling and sentiment that I love. Austen knew what made people tick,” she countered.  “Besides, strictly speaking, it was pre-Victorian. It was written in 1795.”

 

“You are a romantic. Heh,” Ulquiorra chuckled. It was good that one of them had that mindset. “So what are you going to wear to Sados for me tomorrow?”

 

“Hmmm, what do you like?  Pants or skirts?”

 

Mouth twisting to the side, Ulquiorra didn’t take long to contemplate this question. “Hmmm, on you? I like skirts but ladies choice.”

 

“Okay… Then, my second question is how much skin do you want on display?  Another bustier night or leave a little more to the imagination?”

 

Hnnngh. The moment Orihime said the word bustier, Ulquiorra had the mental image of the day he found out who she was. “Slightly more to the imagination but enough to keep me interested?”

 

“You’ve set me quite the challenge,” she said, tapping on her lower lip and crossing her ankle over her knee as she laid back on his bed. “I’ll need to think.”

 

***

 

Ulquiorra was rushing the next day. He recorded a song and posted it to YouTube. He took an artsy picture and uploaded it to Instagram. His phone vibrated until he finally silenced it. 

 

He sang a cover of TLC’s Red Light Special. It was bound to get attention. He went to the gym, came back to take a shower and then once he was done, he texted Orihime.

 

\- ready? Need more time? Today was productive. 

 

She read his message and smiled.

 

  * I saw/heard.  Naughty, naughty boy. ;)  I’m almost ready, wanna come pick me up?



 

He bit his lip and grinned.

 

\- you know how naughty I can be? I still have your keys so I can drive over to you.

 

  * Do it.



 

It took him a couple of minutes to get to Orihime. He had texted her, saying he was there. 

 

She came out a couple minutes later.  It looked like she had a kind of mid-thigh length skirt or dress on; black.  It was hard to tell because she had this huge gray scarf draped around her neck that came down to her waist in places.  The only other part of her outfit that he could see was her sheer black hose and the black high-heeled ankle boots that she often wore to class.  It was maybe a bit disappointing. At least the skirt seemed fitted.

 

Ulquiorra got out of her car and raised his eyebrows, gazing at what he could see of the outfit. “You look nice,” he said. “My imagination is going wild right now.”

 

She smiled at him.  “Oh? Thank you. But don’t get your hopes up too high; you might be disappointed.”

 

He gave her a skeptical look. “I bet you look stunning under all of that. Did you want to drive?”

 

She sighed.  “I’m much too pretty to drive,” she said in a breathy voice, putting the back of her hand against her brow for a second.  In the next she held out her hand for the keys. “Just kidding. Gimme.”

 

Ulquiorra kissed her before he handed the keys over to Orihime. “I didn’t know Vega was such a diva.”

 

“There is much you don’t know about me, Mr. Bond,” she replied putting on a terrible fake Russian accent.

 

He laughed as soon as he was inside the vehicle. “You do terrible voice impressions,” Ulquiorra stated.

 

“You see, now you pay me five hundred rubles for your sassmouth,” she said, continuing the accent but breaking it to laugh when she finished and started the car.

 

“That’s what? Five bucks? After I pay for your coffee I’ll only owe you a buck.”

 

“Nuh-uh, I know you drink for free at Sado’s.  I’ll just have what you’re having.”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. To be fair, Chad owed both of them free drinks after what had transpired after their first and so far only performance. “What did you do today?”

 

“Rehearsed.  Picked out an outfit.  Watched a video about how to do my makeup like this,” she said, tilting her face toward him a bit but keeping her eyes on the road.  “Homework.”

 

He smiled in an appreciative way. “I like it. It’s nice. You rehearsed the concert stuff?”

 

“Yeah.  I had my phone off most of the time at your dad’s house but Ichigo is apparently not pleased that I am not properly preparing. He doesn’t want to be embarrassed to share the stage with me,” she sighed in exasperation.  “He wasn’t that bad in person but he acted like the sky was falling via text. The rehearsal went really well though. I think we’re pretty much ready.”

 

“You are going to do great on Thursday. I’m going to be there. I don’t know if I’m escorting Tats or not but I will be there. Have you picked out a dress?”

 

She took a deep breath through her nose.  “I’m between two. What’s your favorite color?”

 

Ulquiorra glanced at her. “It’s a tie between emerald green and dark gray. Why?”

 

“Well, I have a green one.  I’ll wear that one then.”

 

Since it was Sunday, parking near the coffee house was a lot easier. Ulquiorra waited for Orihime before he held the door of Sado’s open for her. Someone was on the stage crooning away.

 

“Wow, it’s hot in here,” Orihime said with a small grimace as she entered and started pulling on her scarf, draping it over her arm as she took it off.

 

Oh. Ulquiorra’s mouth dropped open as one of Orihime’s shoulders came into view. They were bare. If there was one thing he liked on her, it was her jaw, neck and shoulders. She carried herself well and they all played a part to make that happen. “Hnnngh,” he said.

 

She barely heard him, but she thought she heard a noise and turned to face him.  She had worn her hair down and when she turned he could see that there was one obstruction marring the clean, creamy expanse of skin, and that was a black ribbon choker around her neck.  The front of her dress covered her mostly… A bit of cleavage was visible but it wasn’t deep or over-the-top. There actually were sleeves on the dress but the were off-shoulder and fell into line with the neckline.  She looked up after she tied the scarf around the strap of her purse and saw Ulquiorra’s face. She blushed a bit and asked, “What?”

 

He used the back of a hand to brush against her shoulder. “I don’t know how you would think I would be disappointed. This is almost as good as a bad habit,” he answered with a hungry look in his eyes.

 

“Dang, should have worn one of those, then,” she teased.  She gave him a quick peck on the lips and then scanned the room.

 

Ulquiorra bent his head down until his lips touched her shoulder. “Maybe you can wear one for me tonight?” He suggested.

 

“It’s a deal,” she purred as her eyes met Chad’s and she waved briefly.  “Do you want to sit?”

 

“I can get us a table if you want to get us something to drink? Maybe order some food? Up to you,” he replied.

 

“Okay,” she said and walked over to the counter, as Ulquiorra went to find a seat.  As she approached she heard Chad’s deep rumbling voice. “Hi Vega, it’s been awhile.  What can I get you?”

 

Orihime smiled.  “A black coffee, a cappuccino, and, um… what’s the special?”

 

“Hummus and olive plate.”

 

“Yes, one of those and the Sado salad, please.”

 

Chad smiled at her and rang up her order.  After she paid he gave her a card on a stand with the number 21 on it and was told that Jesse would bring it out when it was ready.  She took the number card and went to look for Ulquiorra.

 

He found a table near the stage and was listening to the music. He was multitasking because he has his phone out, looking at the comments on the video and photo. Man there were some thirsty people in the world. He had his back to Orihime so he didn’t see all the men looking at his girlfriend. 

 

“Ah ha, finally found you,” she said, setting the number card in the center of the table and then taking a seat.  “Something interesting?” She asked, looking at his phone.

 

Ulquiorra showed her and shook his head. “You would think I showed everyone a naked picture with how they react. It’s a damn song,” he complained.

 

“Yeah, but every one of those people likes to imagine you’re singing it directly to them,” she advised. “You have to expect some excitement.”

 

“The only person I sing to is you,” he stated. “You’re the only one I want to sing for.”

 

She blushed right through her makeup.  “Heh, and you call me romantic,” she said, nudging his arm with her shoulder.

 

She put her arm through his elbow after that and leaned into him a bit as she watched the performers on the stage they had used a little while back.  Ulquiorra seemed more preoccupied with his phone, so she gave him companionable privacy as he went through his messages.  

 

A few minutes later the waitress came over with their drinks, the salad and the hummus and olive plate and only then did Orihime sit up and back away slightly.  “Oh, this looks really good, actually. I mean, better than I imagined,” she commented.

 

He’d been staring at messages from Nel that he had yet to open. He didn’t know if he was going to open them or just leave them unread. As soon as he felt Orihime sit up, Ulquiorra put his phone in his pocket and looked at what she ordered. “Oooh hummus and olives,” he remarked. “I like olives.”

 

“Yeah, you strike me as an olive guy.  I love olives,” she said, nicking one off the plate and popping it into her mouth, being careful for pits. There was one.  She grabbed a napkin and got rid of it as discreetly as possible. “Careful for pits,” she warned.

 

“Thanks,” he said. “I would hate to ruin thousands of dollars of dental work.” Ulquiorra smiled at her before he pried an olive open and removed the pit.

 

“You had braces too?” she asked, before giving him a grotesquely large grin.  “I had mine on for three and a half years. Not attractive.”

 

“I didn’t have mine on for nearly that long. They hurt my jaw.”

 

“They do that,” Orihime agreed as she took a sip of her coffee.  Her eyes scanned the room again and she lifted her brows in recognition, but a groan left her throat.  It was that weirdo Ishida, and Kurosaki as well, waving like they were surprised to see her. “Don’t come over don’t come over don’t come over,” she chanted as they, of course, started to come over.

 

“What? Oh god,” Ulquiorra groaned. “It’s Ivan and his Posh Spice looking girlfriend.”

 

Orihime snorted.  “Posh Spice? You’re kind.  I was thinking praying mantis.”  

 

“Hey Hime, hey Ollie.  What’s up?” Ichigo said, pulling up a chair and swinging it around to straddle the seatback, them swiped a tomato off the salad on the table.

 

“Well aren’t you charming,” Orihime griped.

 

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes. “Hey Ivan… And you...” he waved a hand flippantly at Ishida.

 

“You look cold, Orihime,” Uryu said, standing behind her and putting his hands on top of her shoulders.  “It’s October. Have you chosen a Halloween costume?”

 

“What the hell--’ Orihime said, eyes widening in offense.

 

“What the fuck--” Ichigo interrupted, eyes also widening, half in amusement and half in fear.

 

The green-eyed male just sat there, gripping the edge of the table. He wanted to say a lot of things to the guy who was touching his girlfriend but he didn’t want Orihime to accuse him of being possessive again. “She actually said she was warm when she walked in,” he stated in a monotone voice.

 

“Wow.” Ichigo muttered, relaxing as if he was disappointed in Ulquiorra’s non-reaction.

 

Uryu didn’t seem to get the memo.  He made no move to back away.

 

Orihime was pissed.  She stood up and turned to the willowy black-haired man and pushed her chair into his gut.  “Hands off!” she barked, then marched toward the restroom. When she got inside, she realized she wasn’t only angry.  She was kind of freaked out. She knew people were staring at her. She didn’t really feel comfortable being there anymore.  Yeah, Ishida was a weirdo. Yeah, Ulquiorra was her boyfriend, but he seemed pretty distracted tonight. He didn’t seem that disturbed by what just happened.  He barely noticed her when she came back to the table before. He didn’t even bat an eye sending her to go buy dinner. She stood staring at her reflection until she calmed down, which took a good five minutes.  She washed her hands then and went back out. Ishida was gone. Ichigo was still there.

 

After Orihime stomped off, Ulquiorra had glared at the person who offended his girlfriend. He stood and walked over to Ishida. After several threats and stern words, Ulquiorra basically had the guy thrown out of the cafe. Chad was willing enough to do as Ulquiorra requested. After he sat back down he folded his arms over his chest and stared hard at Kurosaki. When Orihime arrived back at the table he looked up at her. “Are you okay?”

 

“No, not really,” she muttered and sat down. She took out her phone and started scrolling through it, just to kind of put herself in a bubble.  She wasn’t hungry anymore.

 

“I’m sorry,” Ulquiorra said to her. He gave Kurosaki another glare. “Kurosaki,is there a reason why you ruined Orihime’s and my date? Did you have some purpose in life today or were you just going around ruining people’s time together?”

 

“I was just trying to be sociable.  Excuse me,” he replied, standing up and walking away.

 

Ulquiorra huffed and then turned back to Orihime. “I’m sorry, again. Do you want to go back to your room?”

 

“No, it’s fine,” she said, still looking at her phone.  She picked up her coffee and just held it near her chin.

 

He took this time to look around the business. People were looking at Orihime. Women were whispering and men were smiling or nodding. What the hell? Now Orihime was almost ignoring him. He scowled at the tabletop and picked up his own cup that held his cappuccino. It was still warm. Ulquiorra put it down. “I want to go,” he said.

 

“Okay I’ll go ask for a box,” she said, getting up and covering her mouth.  She had to stop herself from taking too deep of a breath or she would cry. She made her way back to the coffee bar quickly and asked for a box.  As she waited, a tall blonde stood beside her and spoke in cool, detached voice, “You’ll get used to it, you know.”

 

Orihime looked up into the face of Tier Hallibel.  She had seen her around the music department before but they’d never met.  “Oh, I’m--”   
  


“I know who you are.  I’m Tier, and this is Stark,” she said, pointing to the young man holding up the bar behind her with a completely disinterested expression.  You’ve never been to our place. You should come. I hear you’re doing a concert class this week. They don’t normally have freshmen do them.

 

“No, they don’t…  Dr. Aizen said I had to because of my aunt.”

 

Tier laughed. There was no joy in it, though.  “I’m sorry you have to deal with that asshole. I’ve got Dr. Ukitake. He’s a little bit flaky but he’s kind and he’s a great technician.  He’s retiring soon, though, so he hasn’t taken on any freshmen this year. Anyway, we’re going to go but you should definitely come by this weekend.  When you don’t come, people talk. Jealous people tend to do that. That’s why I have the parties at my house. Anyway, see you later, Orihime.”

 

“It was nice meeting you,” she said, watching the older student leave.  She took a deep breath, feeling a little better, and took the boxes that Jesse had left on the bar for her, then turned back to the table.

 

Ulquiorra had followed her with his eyes. He watched her talk to the blonde. He bit his lip. Hopefully it was nothing bad that the other woman was saying to Orihime. He smiled as she walked back. “Someone you know?”

 

“That was Tier Hallibel. She’s the one whose parties Ichigo always talks about.  She just introduced herself and she was actually really nice. She seems like this standoffish diva but she was really… kind,” she said, sounding a bit shocked.

 

His smile widened a bit. “That’s a good thing, right? Weren’t you invited to a party of hers a while back? Like… Was it the first weekend here or was that a different party?”

 

“Actually, I’ve been invited to a party at her house every weekend by someone.  She just invited me again. She said she has the parties at her house because “jealous people talk if you’re not there.”  I guess she means that if I show up people will stop talking about me?”

 

That made a jolt of guilt go through him. He was the reason she was a social hermit. “You should go, if you want,” Ulquiorra said. “I could go with you, you know, be a designated driver or something.”

 

Her eyes widened.  “You would do that?”

 

Ulquiorra stood again, and hugged Orihime. “Of course I would do that for you. I’m the reason why you’ve had no social life. I’m monopolizing your attention, constantly.”

 

And just like that, Orihime forgot that he had been ignoring her before.  “Well, you can’t blame me for letting you, I mean, c’mon. Have you seen you?” she smiled.  “Come on, let’s get this boxed up and go.”

 

The leftover food was in the boxes and Ulquiorra offered his arm to Orihime before they left Sado’s. “Hey, I didn’t mean to be a dick earlier,” he said as they headed towards the vehicle.

 

Orihime frowned and looked at him.  “What are you talking about?”  

 

“I should have decked Ishida for touching you,” he said. “I did threaten to kick his ass but that whole I don’t like confronting people… I didn’t want to seem overprotective or possessive. They’re people in your department or that you work with.”

 

Orihime twisted her lips to the side and said, “I don’t think you are either of those things, but I understand you have a public image to worry about besides just not wanting to get charged with assault and disorderly conduct,” she sighed again.  “Don’t worry too much about the people in my department. After Thursday it’s just a slow decoupling from it until the end of semester anyway.”

 

That was another thing he felt guilty for. He wanted Orihime to come with him to California but that meant she had to give up a lot of stuff, including her education. Ulquiorra was sure she could find another school out there but it was so much hassle. “My mom’s supposed to call on Wednesday to tell me when she’ll be here with the manager guy. I’m interested in what he has to say about everything. Once the end of the semester hits, we’ll be free of this place.”

 

She grinned as they got to the car.  “I’m looking forward to that.”

 

***

 

Gamuza3

I’m sorry.

I miss you.

I miss my best friend. 

I’m sorry for revealing your identity.

 

ObscurasIV

...That’s all you’ve got to say?

What about spreading rumors about Vega?

I kinda miss you too but I’m so much freer to do as I please.

I have minimal stress now.

 

Gamuza3

I never spread the rumors. 

I was just repeating what Slutchelle said.

She’s the dumb bitch saying things.

My roomie is constantly bringing guys back and screwing them.

Ugh.

  
ObscurasIV

Tchhhhhhhh. You act like you’ve not been getting dicked.

 

Gamuza3

Once by some dude with blue hair.

 

ObscurasIV

I knew it. The day I found out who Veggs was…

Wasn’t his name like Gephardt or something?

Groin?

 

Gamuza3

Grimmjow? He’s okay. He’s obsessed with this one guy.

It’s whatever.

Can you forgive me for being a dumb bitch?

Wait… no Slutchelle is the dumb bitch.

 

ObscurasIV

I will forgive you for being a moron.

I do not forgive you for outing me.

You knew how important it was for me to keep it quiet.

I had people ask me if I was ObscurasIV this weekend.

 

Gamuza3   


Pesche said he seen you in the music room.

You went home? Why didn’t you take me?

 

ObscurasIV

Took Veggs to meet Dad.

It would have been awkward for the ex 

and the current to be in the same vehicle.

 

Gamuza3   


Oh.

 

The messages between him and Nel stopped for several hours while Ulquiorra laid in his bed Monday morning. He had admitted that Nel was an ex. He was finally taking responsibility for that. He stared at the screen of his phone for a long while, waiting to see if those three dots popped up again. They did eventually as he was eating lunch.

 

Gamuza3   


So I’m an ex?

I know I’m an ex-best friend…

Was I ever anything else to you?

 

ObscurasIV

I was wrong for what I did to you. 

I strung you along.

Vega told me to either fall in love

Or cut the rope.

 

Gamuza3

Maybe she told you that to give herself a free lane to you?

You never did give me a chance once she started commenting.

 

ObscurasIV

I gave you a chance.

You didn’t respect ANY of the boundaries.

You kept pushing it.

 

Nel didn’t reply and eventually Ulquiorra had to go to Speech. He hadn’t heard from Orihime all morning except a text that told him good morning and to have a nice day. There was also several I love you’s thrown into the mix. He’d see her in a few minutes. They’d have a bit of time and then that other class they had together. 

 

Ulquiorra didn’t like this Interpersonal Communications class but his father said it would help him when he was out in the real world and working. He texted Orihime when he got inside the Humanities building.

 

  * How late are you running behind? Lol <3 



 

“Very funny, ha ha,” said a voice from up ahead of him.  Orihime stood at the top of the stairs, leaning against the wall and looking down at him.  “You’re late, for your standards, anyway.”

 

He looked up at her and gave Orihime a glimpse of a brilliant smile before he jogged up the stairs and joined her. “I know I’m late, I kind of was enjoying lunch and reading comments again. There are some people out there that are like obsessed,” Ulquiorra told her. “You’re early by your standards.”  

 

“What can I say?  I missed you,” she said with a smile that subsequently dropped into a smirk.  “I think you may be enjoying these obsessed commenters a bit, too. You’ve had your head glued to your phone for a couple days now.”

 

“I know, but it’s not that. It’s the amount of comments,” he said, before leaning down to kiss her. “How was music theory? When do you have class with Dr. Creepy?”

 

“Oh, get this!  Keigo and Mizuiro told me they’re out.  The Vega Highwell Quartet are officially broken up. Excuse me while I cry this single, completely dry tear,” she laughed as she pretended to do as she said.  “Apparently they found some real jazz quartet to play with. One without a vocalist stealing their thunder.”

 

“Ugh, what dicks,” Ulquiorra replied. “Do you need me to stand in? I’m sure me, you, and Ivan could make a go of it. I can’t play drums though.”

 

She laughed again. “You hate Igor.”

 

“I don’t hate him but I wouldn’t spit on him if he was on fire.”

 

“See? Anyway Dr. Dipshit and I meet tomorrow and Wednesday.  Did you get up to anything this morning?”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “Not really. Laid in bed until I felt hungry. I ate, I answered messages.”

 

Her eyebrows shot up.  “You answered messages?  I thought I was the only one who rated replies.  Oh, I see, you told me that to get into my pants.  I see how it is…” She looked over her shoulder at him with her eyes narrowed seductively.  “They are good pants, though.”

 

He was going to tell her about the messages from Nel but decided not to ruin their good mood. It wasn’t important anyway. “I did not tell you that just to say it… And I wholly agree they are good pants. The best out there. Ten out of ten; would get into again,” Ulquiorra said catching her arm and pulling her to him. His happy expression faltered for a moment. It wouldn’t be right for him to keep the messages a secret. There was really nothing bad in them. “Nel… apologized… somewhat. Told her thanks but no dice.”

 

“This is not the first time and I doubt it will be the last.  I wonder if she’ll end up in my DMs again. She did last time.”

 

“I also said I was freer and had less stress with her being absent.” Ulquiorra smiled at Orihime. “If she had just let me be the anonymous YouTube musician, I might think about accepting the apology.”

 

Orihime’s eyebrows raised marginally at his admission, then tried to cover it up.  She had just apologized to him for badmouthing her. Orihime thought it would not do to badmouth her again, despite wanting to desperately.  It seemed to her that Nel would say anything to weasel herself back into Ulquiorra’s good graces. “Well, even with her absence she managed to cause you stress with the announcement, so at least she has that going for her.”

 

Oops.  That’s not what she meant to say.  Way to go, Orihime. Way to not let your bitterness show.

 

“Uh, I guess,” Ulquiorra said as they entered the classroom. Maybe telling her about Nel was a bad idea. “I’m not worried about it though. Nel’s not around.”

 

Orihime nodded.  He took her slip about as well as could be expected. “Well, I just worry about you, that’s all,” she said with a contrite smile as she took her seat.

 

As he sat down next to Orihime, Ulquiorra felt his phone buzz. He’d wouldn’t worry about his social media activity at the moment. This was Orihime’s time, not some anonymous bitch from the internet. “I know you do. I worry about you too.”

 

She laid her hand on his upper arm and smiled until the teacher started class.  After forty-five minutes, as per usual, there was a short break while the teacher got a glass of water and used the restroom or reorganized.  Orihime used the time to talk, usually. She turned to Ulquiorra and was about to start talking, but there he was, staring at his phone again.  Her eyebrows lowered. This was becoming more and more of a thing with him.

 

Nel had messaged him again but he didn’t open it. He just thumbed through the other comments and then switched to his email app. There was an unread message from his mother. Great. Tapping on it, Ulquiorra read what she had sent him. “Oh shit,” he murmured.

 

“What is it?” her eyes snapped to his phone.  He seemed displeased, to say the least.

 

“I’m going to California,” he said looking up at her. “My mom’s not coming here. I guess her and my dad had an argument and she wants me to come out there… Alone. For fuck sakes. I’m going to be out there from the twenty-fifth to the twenty-eighth.”

 

Orihime frowned.  “That sucks. I’m going to miss you.”

 

Ulquiorra frowned also, his brow wrinkled. “It does suck. At least I have time to spend with you before I go. That’s a positive. It says that I’m going to be signing a contract with her label and then be taken to a stylist. I need to update my image. What does that mean?”

 

Orihime’s frown turned into a scowl.  “It means the label wants to control your look and your image.  They are going to turn you into a brand and sell a version of you that may or may not be authentic.  Think about it before you agree to anything. Before you sign anything. I mean, there’s an upside and a downside probably.  If getting yourself heard by the most people and having the support of a label behind you is what you want, then it is probably worth it to allow your image to be manipulated.  People do it all the time and some people don’t mind at all, I think. But if that’s not what you want… Just think it over.” Her mind was racing and she was not filtering her thoughts as they came to her.  She didn’t tell him that red flags were popping up all over her brain, though. She didn’t want to ruin this for him.

 

“I know. I mean I’ve updated my image. I’m no longer the long haired loser from weeks ago.” It was clear that Ulquiorra wasn’t used to his short length.

 

“Hey!  Don’t talk shit about my boyfriend!  He looks hot with or without long hair.” she said, tipping her chin up.

 

He was about to argue with her but then realized she was talking about him. It made him smile. “Your boyfriend misses his longer hair,” Ulquiorra replied. “So are you nervous about Thursday?”

 

“Yes.  I’m sure it will be fine, but like I mentioned before, I’m always nervous before a performance.  Also I’m sure it will be picked apart. I know it will. That’s kind of the point of the class, but it's always a tough pill to swallow criticism, even if it is constructive.”

 

Ulquiorra smiled at her. He was putting his own worries and fears on the back burner for the moment. He didn’t want to think about flying out to California alone or signing anything. He leaned over and kissed Orihime. “I could smuggle you in my carry on bag.”

 

She nuzzled the side of his face for a second with her nose.  “I’m small but I’m not  _ that _ small,” she giggled.  “I do wish I was coming with you.  It’s probably best that I’m not, though.  I’d get in your way. You don’t need me in your ear voicing everything that freaks me out and planting fears in your head.  It would be different here but I think I’d be more on edge out there.” She was just saying that to make him feel better about going.  He was clearly not excited.

 

He sighed and pressed his forehead into hers. In a few minutes their time would be interrupted again by the teacher. Ulquiorra had a lot to think about. Orihime was probably right, but it still made him nervous. After a moment passed, he straightened in his seat and took her hand giving it a squeeze.

 

She squeezed his hand three times, mouthing “I love you,” and squeezing once for each word, then faced front as class began again.

 

The rest of class passed by slowly. He was only paying half attention to what was being said. After class ended, Ulquiorra sat there for a moment.

 

“Hey, you alright?” Orihime asked.  She had been standing and waiting for him to get up for a few seconds.

 

“Yeah, just thinking. And worrying,” he said, smiling at her. “Sorry.”

 

“Hey, it’s okay.  You know, if you really want, I could fly myself out there and just stay near wherever you are, if you’re that worried.  I’m sure I could get a cheap flight. There is a couple who were friends with my parents’ in LA who always send me birthday cards.  Maybe I could crash with them.”

 

“It’s fine, Orihime. I’m just...” Ulquiorra had never been a fan of change. He didn’t like when plans suddenly were postponed or flipped upside down. It was one of those quirks he had struggled with. He liked constants in his life. He liked routine and structure and guidelines. “I don’t like change. It makes me nervous.”

 

“I get it,” she said, holding a hand out to him to encourage him to his feet.  “What do you say after our next class we go back to my place and work out the nerves?” she said, waggling her eyebrows comically at him.

 

Ulquiorra smiled. “Sounds like a plan.”


	21. Untrue

 

 

Gamuza3

So you’re not going to be friends with me again?

 

ObscurasIV

Didn’t say that. You need to respect my relationship with Veggs.

This isn’t elementary school. I can do what I want.

 

Gamuza3

I’m kind of mad.

She took my place.

You’ve been crazy for her since she said something on your first video.

 

ObscurasIV

Maybe, maybe not.

Sometimes you’re too much.

You really want to show that you’re sorry?

 

Gamuza3

Yes.

What do I have to do?

Beg? Plead? Streak across campus naked?

Not doing the last one by the way.

 

ObscurasIV

Doing anything Thursday?

Orihime has a thing and I’m going.

You should go and then apologize to her.

 

Once again, Nel fell silent and Ulquiorra didn’t hear from her until Wednesday. He was shocked to find her sliding into the seat next to him.

 

“Hey,” she said nudging his shoulder.

 

Ulquiorra said nothing. He just gave her a side-eyed stare.

 

“C’mon,” Nel said. “I’m going to your thing tomorrow. I’ll apologize to her. I’m sorry that I hurt you.”

 

He finally turned his head and looked at her. “Really? You’re just not saying that to say it? I know how you operate Nel,” Ulquiorra replied.

 

“This is an olive branch. A crooked one because I had to glue and piece it back together but still, it’s a start, isn’t it?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded.

 

***

 

Orihime’s rehearsals with Ichigo went well.  Her last session with Dr. Aizen was a practice run in the concert hall.  He was complimentary. He asked what she would be wearing. He seemed less than impressed with her answer.  

 

“A-line?  Really? You’re nineteen, not ninety-seven.  What color?”

 

“Emerald green.”

 

“Neckline?”

 

“Sweetheart illusion.  Sleeveless.”

 

The vocal professor rolled his eyes. “It’s a waste.  You’re not going to be young and perky forever, Miss Inoue.  Next time give the people what they paid for, alright?”

 

Orihime said nothing as she walked off the stage with Ichigo.  The taller redhead commented, “Wow. That guy really does not care if he is called out for sexual harassment, does he?”

 

“It would appear not.  He knows my aunt, though, so I guess he feels like he has impunity.”

 

Ichigo’s eyes widened.  “Sucks to be you, then.”

 

Orihime scoffed. “Thanks for your support.  Anyway, after the concert class is over, are you going to be doing more weddings and stuff?”

 

“Yeah, probably.  Why do you ask?”

 

“Money.  If you have one that wants a vocalist, keep me in mind?”

 

Ichigo smiled at her.  “You got it,  _ Vega _ .  Good luck tomorrow,” he said, scampering off toward the classrooms.

 

***

 

“Orihime, I have good news and bad news.”

 

“What’s that?” the singer asked her roommate.

 

“I got a job teaching karate to kids,” Tatsuki replied with a wide grin.

 

“Oh, that’s great!  What’s the bad news?”

 

“I can’t come to your concert thing tomorrow.  I have a class. Tell your boyfriend I’m sorry?”

 

Orihime laughed. “No offense, but I don’t think he’ll mind.

 

\- Tatsuki is out for tomorrow.  Got a job. She said she’s sorry.

 

Orihime laid down after she sent the text to Ulquiorra and closed her eyes.

 

\- Oh no! Where else am I going to find a date? LOL. Tell Tats good job. ILY.

 

Ulquiorra sat in his dorm room, trying to record but nothing was coming out right. There was pressure on him from all sides. At least that’s what it felt like. Nel, his mom, his dad, the music department here. Orihime did not pressure him to do anything. She let him drift along occasionally guiding him. He needed someone like that once in a while; someone to help him along. He was going to buy her some flowers and present her with them after the concert. He also had a surprise for her. He took it upon himself to purchase her two “bad habits”; they were pieces that he’d been eyeing for weeks. The lingerie was already wrapped in a fancy gift box.

 

Orihime smiled and told Tatsuki what Ulquiorra said, then texted back.

 

\- I did.  She says thanks. I’m your date.  I’m just on stage… that sounds weird. lol

 

\- Tell Tats she owes me a date then. JK Lol. It’s not weird. I’ll be in the crowd, watching your every move. You’re going to do fine.

 

\- Thanks.  I love you so much.  I better get some sleep so I don’t look like a zombie tomorrow.  Goodnight! <3 xoxo

 

Ulquiorra groaned. He wanted to be laying beside her but knew she needed the rest.

 

\- Wish I was there. Love you too.

 

A notification popped up at the top of his screen. Nel had messaged him again.

 

Gamuza3

Do I need to dress up for this thing?

I don’t do dresses, you know this.

 

ObscurasIV

You’d wear a dress if we were going to a club.

A slutty ass, look at me dress.

 

Gamuza3

You liked it.

Always had your hands on me.

 

ObscurasIV

That’s in the past.

Don’t get my actions twisted.

Wear something nice that is IF you’re coming.

 

Gamuza3

I’d like to come with you.

Does Vega come?

 

Ulquiorra’s lip curled and he decided to leave that message unanswered. It totally wasn’t Nel’s business what he did with Orihime. He plugged his phone in to charge and then rolled over onto his stomach to sleep.

 

***

 

Orihime was quiet before English class the next day.  They had gotten their Shakespeare paper back, and had received an A minus for their efforts.  Before the break halfway through class, the professor told the groups to discuss their results and ways they could have improved.

 

“I think we did pretty good,” Orihime commented.  “I’m pleased with an A minus.”

 

“We could have gotten an A plus if we had focused more on the work instead of whatever we had our heads in,” Ulquiorra stated.

 

Orihime giggled.  “All things considered, then, this is excellent.”  She blew out a breath. “I’m sorry. I’m nervous.”

 

Ulquiorra raised an eyebrow. He didn’t care about his grades, not really, but he wanted good marks so that if he decided the music industry wasn’t for him, he’d have a chance at a good school. “I know. I just woke up in a sour mood.”

 

“I’m sorry, do you want to talk about it?  I don’t think we need to discuss the paper.”

 

“Not really. I mean I don’t even know why I’m in a bad mood. What time do you want me to escort you to the concert place? I need to know because I have something I have to get from my room before we go,” Ulquiorra explained.

 

“It starts at seven and I have to be there at six.  You can stay with me until it’s time to sit down if you want, otherwise you can go get dinner or something.  I’ll have to leave at about quarter to six.”

 

He nodded once. “I’ll just grab it and meet you. That seems to be the most efficient way to go. Right now I’m so agitated that--” he sighed. Ulquiorra rolled his head, trying to release the tension he felt.

 

Orihime frowned.  “What’s going on? Is this all about the thing with your mom?”  As far as Orihime knew, Nel had apologized to Ulquiorra and that had been it.

 

“This entire thing is stress. I just want it to be over with.”

 

“I’m sorry…”  She had the feeling he wasn’t telling her something. “I’m going to use the restroom and be right back since it’s break.”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. He heard her. He was irritated. It felt like his skin was crawling or that he had a deep itch that he couldn’t reach. It was creepy. He felt… prickly and unsure of the cause of it. He should tell Orihime about Nel’s messages. He should let her read the conversation. He didn’t want to pile more drama in her lap though. After the concert class, he’d tell her.  Maybe he’d wait until she was done and take her somewhere to celebrate. His phone buzzed and he took it out of his pocket. 

 

Gamuza3 had sent a photo to him.

 

Great.

 

Tapping the message, he opened it up to see Nel looking very professional in what he would consider a classic ensemble. She wore a pair of black pants and a olive green tunic thing. There was a black cardigan over it. 

 

Gamuza3

Well? Appropriate for Mr. Prude?

Something more revealing?

 

ObscurasIV

You probably wish I wanted something more revealing.

Not a prude.

 

He put his phone back and waited for Orihime.

 

She came back in a moment later.  She looked somewhat pale. She was out of breath.  She sat down and clenched her fists. It looked like she might cry.

 

“You okay?” he asked.

 

“No. I got a call while I was on the way to the restroom.  My aunt is here. She’s coming tonight.” Her breathing sped up and she was clearly going to lose her already tentative composure.  “I have to get out of here.”

 

“Okay, calm down for a moment,” Ulquiorra said as he put his hand on her shoulder. He turned to her and frowned. Her aunt being here complicated things. He hadn’t imagined Auntie Bitchface being around. “We can go anywhere you want. We can leave now and go chill in my room until you need to get your stuff.”

 

Orihime nodded and stood, putting her study materials into her bag and leading the way out of class as quickly as possible so as not to draw attention should the class resume before they left the room.  She didn’t stop until she was outside.

 

Ulquiorra followed her. It was known in their shared classes that one followed the other. They were a thing. One went with the other. As soon as he reached her, Ulquiorra put his arms around her. “Hey, come on. What’s the issue with Claire being here?”

 

“She is going to make this all about her, you know?  This was supposed to be my last hurrah. And it’s not just about stealing my thunder.  This is also supposed to be my way to flip Aizen the bird. She is going to make me play nice.  To be  _ agreeable _ .  She’s going to go along with everything he says and suddenly the dress I’m wearing - which _ she _ bought, by the way - is going to be too conservative and I’ll be accused of trying to sabotage myself.   No matter what happens though, I am not going anywhere with them afterward. Don’t let me do it. I want to not just go along like I always did.”

 

“New plan,” Ulquiorra said to her. “Let’s go pick out something else from your closet. Let’s show them that you can and will do whatever you want. You’re an adult now.”

 

She huffed but followed him back to her room. Once she was inside, she pulled out the dress she had planned to wear.  “I wanted to wear this one because you said it was your favorite color. Wanna see it on?”

 

The dress shimmered in the daylight that came in from the windows. It was a beautiful dark emerald green. Ulquiorra nodded with some regret. He would see her in this dress another time. “I bet it’s gorgeous on you,” he said as he sat down on her bed.

 

She insisted on trying it on then and there.  She might never have another opportunity. “Turn around,” she said, then got it on quickly.  “Okay, look.”

 

Ulquiorra had closed his eyes when she started undressing but then opened them when she said to and he raised his eyebrows. “Oh,” he breathed. “You look amazing. That reveals just enough of you for it to be appealing and tasteful. The cleavage is a nice touch.”

 

She smiled. “Thanks.  I may still wear it. But, I’ll pull all my gowns out and you can have a look,” she said, pulling out a gold mermaid dress, burgundy spaghetti-strap princess cut dress, as similar one in black, a midnight blue mermaid wrap dress, and a wine-colored sweetheart strapless gown with a bit of a plunge in front and a thigh high slit on the left leg, and a tight A-line silhouette that hugged her hips but not as much as a mermaid, with a bit of a train.  She thought all of these were more suited to lounge shows, not a classical recital. “So, what do you think?”

 

“I really like the green one. The dark blue one looks nice but this one,” he said as he touched the darker red gown. “I kind of like this one. Why don’t you try those on?”

 

“Okay, I need a different bra for the satin ones,” she said, stripping right in front of him.  She was too stressed to worry about how seeing her like that may affect him. She went to her drawer and pulled out a stick-on bra and got herself into it, then tried on the blue mermaid dress. 

 

“So?”

 

Ulquiorra was already adjusting himself. “Uh… uh… I like it. It’s very… revealing.” He was supposed to be helping her not getting horny.

 

She frowned.  “Too revealing? This is a classical recital not a porno,” she muttered, stripping out of the blue dress and stepping into the wine red gown.  A small zip later and one clasp and it was on. “How about this one? Kind of revealing but not as much compared to the last one.”

 

Once again his dick was guiding him. “I like it. That uh, thing down your leg. It’s nice. This is classy. It goes well with your coloring. Uh...” Ulquiorra could just stare at her breasts and the way the dress seem to flow like liquid over her curves. “I can’t think right now. If you had only these two dresses to pick from which would you choose?”

 

“Probably this one, it isn’t as tight so I feel like I can breathe.  The slit is not that high and only the boobs are kind of out there… but I don’t know, I mean it’s not like they’re being pushed up, it’s just a bit of a plunge.  What do you think? Do you think Jon would approve?”

 

Ulquiorra knew how his dad thought. He appreciated the female form. He knew that if someone was attractive enough his dad’s head would turn. “I think my dad would tell you to wear what you’re most comfortable in but also what makes you feel good about yourself,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“What do you think?  Green or red?” Orihime still felt the green one was more appropriate, but if everyone else around her thought more skin was better, maybe she should listen.  Maybe she did look like a geriatric person in the green one.

 

“I like the green one. But the red one… Damn, Woman.”

 

“You think so?”  She still wasn’t convinced, but she smiled at his reaction.

 

Ulquiorra leaned back on the bed to show her the erection that was becoming evident. “Looking at you in that, does this. If you didn’t have this stupid concert thing to do I would ask you to… you know...” His face turned pink slightly.

 

She scoffed. “You would, would you?” she said, laughing, but walked over to run her hand over the crotch of his pants.  “Maybe you want to help me get rid of some of this stress?”

 

He looked up at her with half-lidded eyes then down at her hand. “Depends,” Ulquiorra said as his hips arched involuntarily. “What kind of help do you need? And do you really want to walk into that concert hall with a load dripping out of you?” He smirked at her. It was rare that he talked that way to Orihime.

 

Her eyes narrowed.  “If you do it properly, and more than once, there is a good chance you could fuck it right out of me,” she said, already unzipping the dress and letting it pool at her feet, before stepping out of it and carefully laying it on Tatsuki’s bed.  She peeled off the stick-on bra while her back was to Ulquiorra and then pulled her panties down. She crossed the narrow gap between the two beds and stood between his legs. “So? How about this?”

 

His breathing sped up as he watched her. A whine left him as he unbuttoned his jeans then pulled down the zipper. It didn’t take much to lift his ass and slide the pants down his thighs. “You don’t realize how beautiful you are to me,” Ulquiorra said, holding a hand out to her.

 

She climbed up onto his legs and sank down on top of him, sighing in relief as he filled her.  She wasn’t soaking wet or anything so she had to start slowly. Honestly, she just wanted to get lost in him for a little while; to feel the closeness that had been missing the past couple of days.  This was helping a lot. She blushed at his words and felt a bit bashful as she asked, “I am?”

 

As soon as he felt the heat of her body engulf his cock, Ulquiorra groaned before biting his lip. She felt so good. “You are. You are gorgeous and I love you,” he said, touching her body, letting his free hand slide up her thigh and settle on her waist.

 

“I love you, too.  So much,” she sighed as she rocked on his body slowly, the fingers on their joined hands entwining.  “I missed this. I know it’s only been a couple days but I miss you. We’ve been preoccupied.”

 

Rolling his hips against her, Ulquiorra nodded as best as he could. “I missed you last night. I wanted to be beside you. I wanted to be inside of you. I miss you when you’re not by me. I hate it when I’m distracted and can’t focus on you.”

 

She moaned softly as he pressed into her and she raised her face to the ceiling for a moment, hissing when she looked back down.  “You know that no matter how busy I am I’ll always make time for you. All you have to do is call or text me and I’ll be there,” she leaned down to kiss his mouth.  “Anytime.”

 

“I knew you needed rest last night,” he said as he drove into her. Since he had been preoccupied, perhaps he’d last longer without needing a break or her getting herself off. Ulquiorra untangled their fingers and used that hand to pull her down. “You may get a three a.m. text that says I’m coming over to fuck your brains out one of these days.”

 

“You know my room combination for a reason.  Use it,” she breathed into his mouth.

 

“I think we should just be roomies,” Ulquiorra replied. He thrust against her, burying himself deep inside of Orihime. “I love you.”

 

“I can agree there,” she said, punctuated with a whimper as Ulquiorra hit a spot inside of her that was sensitive.  “I love you,” she echoed, starting to move faster on top of him.

 

Oh, that felt really good. “I like this position,” he told her. Ulquiorra put both hands on her hips as he used the springy surface of the bed to help him. His thighs tensed as he used them to drive into her. This was bliss. It had to be. Her body felt like it was made for him. “You’re mine, Vega.”

 

“With pride,” she answered his declaration, changing the rhythm of her movements slightly so that as her entrance neared the crown of his dick she slowed slightly, allowing her walls to tighten and pull at his length before she crashed their bodies back together.  “I want you all to myself.”

 

Hnnngh; the way she was moving combined with her words made him moan. “You want help today or--Oh god you feel amazing. I want you all to myself too. I don’t want anyone else to touch you,” Ulquiorra moved a hand until it was between her legs.

 

A few more rises and she began panting as her body neared its boiling point.  When he added his fingers to the mix she began to fall apart. She had no ability to stop the words that fell from her lips as she came on his dick.  “No one ever will. I am yours and you are mine. Ah, fuck!’

 

He hissed. The sensation of her walls gripping and releasing him in such manner brought Ulquiorra to that peak. He had to bite his lip to keep from calling out her name. He couldn’t hold onto this. “I’m coming,” he whimpered and did just that, feeling the pulses run through his body and through his cock.

 

She fell on top of him in a limp heap of satisfied woman before he was even finished, kissing his neck in a lazy manner and enjoying the sound of his breath holding and gasping as he came. When he finally went still and quiet and his body relaxed under her, she nuzzled his ear and kissed his cheek.  “I really do love you. It’s not just when I want you. It’s always.”

 

“Same,” he said in a sleepy voice. That orgasm had been the best one yet. They always seemed to tire him out though. “I knew I loved you and that I wanted you before I met you. Even when I didn’t know who you were...”

 

She buried her face into the side of his neck and held him close, nodding a bit to acknowledge what he said.  Now that he was starting to soften and fall out of her part of her was beginning to feel anxious again. She had to ask.  “How come you’ve been on your phone so much the past couple days? It’s like your popularity has surged or something.”

 

Ulquiorra turned his face towards her. “It was the same thing after I posted that shirtless selfie. I learned my lessons with posting sexy selfies and songs. Don’t do it,” he said. “The song was meant for you.”

 

She smiled into the side of his neck and hummed.  “Well it did the trick, wouldn’t you say?”

 

“Definitely. I got you a gift for after your thing tonight. I was thinking we could try this sushi place and then come back to your room or mine and you could open it?” Ulquiorra said it as if he was giving her suggestions.

 

“Sounds perfect.  You didn’t have to get me anything, but now I’m looking forward to it.”

 

No, he didn’t have to get her anything but she deserved it and he wanted to see her in these things. Ulquiorra just smiled. “Well how about we take a nap and then we can do what we just did again and then we can get ready for your concert?”

 

She smiled and carefully rolled off of him, pulling the covers down and climbing between them.  He followed suit, and was asleep before she even got settled. It wasn’t until she had set an alarm and nearly fell asleep herself that she realized he hadn’t bothered to clean himself up.  It made her smile as she nodded off.

 

***

 

“Do you mind dropping me off at the entrance so I don’t have to walk from the parking lot?  I don’t want to attract too much attention in this get-up. I’ll wait for you in the lobby,” Orihime said as they approached the Fine Arts building in her car. Ulquiorra was driving.

 

“It’s fine,” he replied as he smiled. It was the first time since his identity had been revealed as Obscuras IV that he felt totally relaxed. He had no clue why he had let go of all of his stress. It was probably because his girlfriend had worked his body to the point where he could do nothing but let go of what he had been holding back. “I’ll drop you off then go park and then grab the bag with the things in it.”

 

“Thanks, you’re the best,” she said, kissing his cheek and getting out of the car.  She wasn’t dressed yet; she didn’t want the fabric of the gown to wrinkle. She wore her hosiery, underwear, and shoes and a long trench coat and that was it.  She already had her hair done half up. She definitely did not want to be seen by a ton of people.

 

After Orihime was out of the car, Ulquiorra picked the closest parking spot he could get. He gathered Orihime’s dress and other stuff she had brought along and the bag that held the pink roses and the box with the lingerie in it. He took a deep breath, and straightened his posture as he locked the car and walked to the building. Finding the redhead waiting inside, he smiled. “Now where do we go?” he asked.

 

“Follow me, if you please, kind sir,” she said with a nervous giggle, leading him around the hall to a back entrance.  “The backstage area is accessible back here. We’ll stop at the dressing room and then I’ll run a quick rehearsal with Ichigo, and then we can hang out in the green room until it’s time for you to take a seat.  You can pick out your seat and save it while we rehearse.”

 

“Well I need to save two seats,” Ulquiorra said as they walked. He took a deep breath knowing that his girlfriend would probably freak out. “Well, I don’t need to save another seat but...”

 

“But what?”

 

“Hear me out, okay? Nel wants to apologize to you for how she’s treated you. I invited her to hear you. I don’t know if she’ll actually show up,” Ulquiorra replied. 

 

The feeling of disappointment and deception stung her hard, and she couldn’t disguise a flinch.  Why the hell would he choose to do this today? Why would he do it at all? Orihime didn’t want Nel’s apology.  Orihime didn’t want Nel anywhere near her or Ulquiorra. Nel was a cancer as far as she was concerned. He had clearly not taken her feelings into consideration at all when he invited Nel.  Was she the reason he had been on his phone so much lately? Her face started to flush as her blood pressure rose. “Well, we’ll see I guess. I gotta go get dressed so let’s hurry up,” she finally said and opened the door to the backstage hall.

 

“Orihime, look, it’s important to me that she apologizes for how she’s treated you. She just can’t walk all over me or you or us and expect to return to my life. You don’t have to accept her apology. Just the fact if she does apologize will bury the hatchet,” Ulquiorra stated. “I’m not letting her back into my inner circle. She knows she messed up.”

 

“Well that’s nice,” she tried to keep the disappointment out of her voice but failed as she sighed heavily. “I wish you had picked a different day though. I really need to focus and this is definitely a distraction.” She turned into a room labeled as a dressing room and locked the door behind Ulquiorra.  She took off her coat and took the garment bag from his arms, unzipping it to pull out the dark red gown. Her expression was pinched and tense, and she was feeling the start of a headache come on. This wouldn’t do. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, humming a few scales softly as she stepped into the garment.

 

Ulquiorra helped her with the dress and then kissed her shoulder then her neck. “I’m sorry. She said that she would do anything. I think her trying to swallow her pride is good payback for outing me. She may not show up,” he whispered into her ear. “I want to show you off, Orihime. I love you. I want Nel to see I am happy.”

 

His sentiment was nice but his brain lagged when it came to the green-haired woman.  “I’m sure she would do anything,” she muttered under her breath and hung up the garment bag, checking her face in a mirror.  She had done her face and hair back at her dorm and everything looked alright. That headache wasn’t going anywhere though. “I wonder if they have any tylenol or anything back here.” she said to herself, looking around.  There was nothing, of course. The thought that it was pretty selfish of him to make her day about him flirted around the periphery of her thoughts. She tried to push it from her mind. It wasn’t helpful. She needed to focus or her performance was going to suffer.  “I’m going to go see if Ichigo is ready. You can stay here or go pick out seats for you guys.”

 

His mouth was a thin line. That tension that was in his neck earlier came back. “No, I’m going to tell Nel to forget it. To not come. It’s important to me that she apologizes and sees how wonderful you are to me. I want her to see how happy you make me. Obviously we don’t share the same idea.” He sighed and turned to unlock and open the door. “I’ll go pick out my own seat.”

 

“You may as well let her come.  It’s important to you,” she said after him as he walked toward the stage.  It was really unbelievable. He was making this all about him. He didn’t even think about how she might feel.  And now, even after she told him, he had the nerve to try to make her feel guilty about not ‘sharing the same idea’?  What happened to her boyfriend? Where had he gone? She knocked at the dressing room across the hall and Ichigo popped his head out.  “You ready for dress rehearsal?” she asked the orange-haired man in an exasperated voice.

 

“Yeah, I’ll meet you out there,” he said, somewhat nervous.  He wouldn’t open the door all the way and Orihime thought she heard a man chuckling from the other side of the door.  Whatever. 

 

“Okay, don’t dawdle,” she warned and walked out to the stage.

 

A minute later Ichigo came out adjusting the black belt that held his trousers up.  His sheet music was already on the piano. “Nice dress, Inoue. Aizen will be pleased you went against the ninety-year-old one.”

 

Orihime tried to smile but only kind of smirked. “Thanks.  Are you ready?” she asked, her eyes searching the hall for Ulquiorra.  She didn’t see him at first. Then she saw the bag he had in the center of the second row.  She also saw the door to the lobby swing open and closed. She nodded to Ichigo and they began the first number.

 

***

 

Ulquiorra was standing right outside of the door. He heard Orihime’s voice and sighed. Her attitude bothered him. Why did she get so shitty with him over Nel? It wasn’t like he had any interest in her. Weren’t they supposed to be adults and grown up about things now? Couldn’t Orihime let things go? 

 

ObscurasIV

Don’t bother coming.

Veggs doesn’t want you here.

 

Gamuza3

Too bad I do what I want.

I wasn’t even planning on going but now…

I might.

 

ObscurasIV

Whatever.

Should have stuck with the idea I was asexual.

 

Gamuza3

Uh oh. I smell trouble in Paradise.

Problems?

 

ObscurasIV

Fucking Orihime.

I’m trying to make my life more stress free.

She has her ass in a twist

She doesn’t want you here

She doesn’t want anyone who could possibly steal my attention around me.

 

Gamuza3

Oh, well I won’t go.

But…

She’s allowed to think that.

I mean... 

Did you ever think I might have ulterior motives?

 

ObscurasIV

I’m allowed to have friends.

I know you have ulterior motives.

It’s the matter of figuring them out.

You happen to forget I’ve known you for 14 years?

Gamuza3

You don’t like people so you don’t get to pull the friends card.

I don’t have motives. Not really.

I just miss my best friend.

 

ObscurasIV

Whatever.

Do not show up.

 

Ulquiorra turned his phone off and stood there for a moment. Maybe he should be like Orihime was acting and throw a fit every time someone with a dick even looked at her. He should march into that room behind him and demand that she stop this nonsense and that Kurosaki get the fuck out of there. He remembered the night at the hotel and their jazz quartet performance. He had heard what Kurosaki had said to Orihime. It was pretty fucking evident that both Ishida and Ivan wanted her.

 

He wouldn’t do that though. 

 

The green-eyed male hated confrontation. He would logically discuss things and debate until he was blue in the face rather than fight about things. He would walk way and ignore the issue if it came to fighting.

 

He took a deep breath and opened the door to the concert hall just enough to slip inside. He stood there and watched Orihime sing. That was Vega. That was his girlfriend. That was the person he had given himself too. She was his reality.

 

Maybe they had rushed into things too soon. He hadn’t given Vega a lot of personal information about himself. She had done the same. They both had treated the situation with being online friends as a sure thing. They both acted like the other one would always be there.

 

Vega had already shown him that she would drop him. She had done it before while she was off doing who knows what her various boyfriends. He was over it. That’s all he kept telling himself. He wasn’t bothered by Mr. Brazil and her months of silence. He wasn’t bothered that she just picked up like nothing had happened. 

 

Ulquiorra was an idiot.

 

Instead of going to his seat, he found another seat at the back of the room and watched, hunkering down until only the top of his head was visible.

 

“What is wrong with you!” a deep masculine voice came from offstage, interrupting Orihime’s song. “Where is your breath support?  You perform all the time. You can’t tell me it’s nerves!” The voice was not kind.

 

Orihime stopped singing and looked toward the voice of Sousuke Aizen and let her shoulders drop.  She had no excuses. She wasn’t going to tell him the reason either. It was none of his damn business.

 

The vocal professor strode across the stage until he stood before Orihime.  He grasped her firmly by the shoulders, complaining loudly with no regard for Ichigo’s presence as he barked, “What do I always tell you?  Shoulders back,” he pushed them into position, “and tits out!” He cupped her breasts, pushing them up and together. “You useless girl!” Dr. Aizen huffed.  “Don’t make me look bad in front of your aunt. Do it again,” he ordered, exiting the stage.

 

Orihime stood there, silenced and lip quivering for a moment until Ichigo cleared his throat.  She nodded and coughed, taking a few deep breaths and then taking the posture Aizen had directed, starting the song again.

 

Ulquiorra watched the entire thing. He didn’t like how that old guy had touched Orihime but from where he was sitting, it didn’t look good. Orihime had just accepted the touch and nodded. She had always made comments about Dr. Aizen. Was there something going on between them? Why did the guy look so comfortable fondling his girlfriend? He put his hands against his face, wishing today would just be over with.

 

She made it through the number and when it was over she turned and left the stage without a word to anyone.  She did not wait for further notes from Aizen or anything. She didn’t stop until she got to the green room, then texted Ulquiorra.

 

\- I don’t know where you are but I am in the green room if you want to meet me.  I can’t be in the hall anymore with that bastard.

 

\- I was sitting in the back of the hall. Nel’s not coming, she has better shit to do.

 

Ulquiorra texted her back and then stood, sighing. He wanted to go back to Orihime. He wanted to tell her it was okay. He wanted to comfort her but things weren’t adding up. Things weren’t jiving with him. Maybe the bastard she was referring to was Kurosaki.

 

Orihime stood in the green room trying to calm down.  She read his text. He seemed more concerned about Nel than her.  If he had seen what had happened, why didn’t he say something? Didn’t he care?  She didn’t care if Nel was coming or not at this point. That snake was the least of her concerns.

 

\- ok

 

He was on his way to the green room to talk to Orihime but ran into the dickhead who touched her. 

 

“Excuse me, where are you going?”

 

Already Ulquiorra knew this wasn’t going to be good. “I’m going to see Orihime,” he said facing the teacher.

 

Aizen was displeased, that much Ulquiorra could tell. “No, you’re not with the music department. You don’t even have a major, Mr. Cifer. You’re a distraction to Miss Inoue. I suggest you wait in the lobby or find a seat to view the performances today.”

 

He was a distraction? Ulquiorra could only glare at the guy. How could Orihime even let this asshole touch her? She threw a fit about Ishida touching her but she couldn’t stand up for herself when this guy did it? “Sorry, I just wanted to tell her good luck,” he replied.

 

When he got back to the concert hall, Ulquiorra found the seat with the bag on it and flopped down into it. He then set the bag between his feet. Pulling out his phone, he sent a text back to Orihime.

 

\- Aizen says I’m a distraction to you. I’m not allowed back there. Sorry.

 

Orihime was furious.  That man was supposed to be her mentor!  All he cared about was furthering his own prestige and copping a feel.

 

\- I hate him.  I’m sorry you have to wait alone.  

 

Yeah, it really had looked like she hated him. Ulquiorra shook his head. He was letting his irritation get the better of him. 

 

\- It’s okay. I’ve got you here with me to keep me company. I’m gonna be out here, waiting to hear you sing. Good luck, you’re going to do great.

 

\- thanks. I love you.  It should be starting soon.  First some jazz combo then Ivan then me then intermission.  I plan on leaving then.

 

He sent a thumbs up emoji and a heart. Orihime wasn’t cheating on him. He knew she didn’t like Aizen. She was constantly complaining about the guy. He had nothing to worry about. If that was the case then why did he feel like this? Why?

 

\- Love you too. I know this is tedious for you but after this, you don’t have to give a damn about Aizen.

 

She smiled at his attempt to give her a pep talk and already the stress she was feeling started to decrease.  She thought about their morning and afternoon and how they slept in each other’s arms and how peaceful she had felt then.  It was doing a lot to calm her down.  

 

\- you’re right.  I’m not going back to voice studio after today.

 

The hall began to fill when Ulquiorra got that text.  The performance would begin in less than ten minutes.

 

The smile on his face was faint as people began to sit around him. This seemed like a lot of people for a concert class. Perhaps they advertised for it or something. He didn’t look around so Ulquiorra missed the woman with green hair sitting in the back of the place. He decided to text Orihime again.

 

\- Good vibes. Let it go, okay? Focus Vega. I’ll be watching for and listening to everything.

 

She wished she could hug him.  Instead she sent a gif from the movie Frozen and another message.

 

\- thanks.  I couldn’t do this without you. <3

 

The house lights darkened.  An MC walked out to the stage.  Aizen. He asked that the audience silence their phones and refrain from audio recording or flash photography and announced the first performance.

 

The jazz band was good. Ulquiorra found himself lightly tapping his foot along to their pieces. He didn’t really care about them though. He was there for one reason and that reason would be on stage as soon as this group was done with their numbers and after Kurosaki played some boring piano.

 

Orihime was backstage watching Ulquiorra from behind the stage curtains.

 

\- you look cute.  They’re good, right?

 

His phone vibrated against his leg. Ulquiorra was glad he had silenced it before the performance started. He pulled the device out of his pocket and glanced at the screen with a raised eyebrow.

 

\- They’re catchy. And thanks? How can you tell what I look like. It’s dark af out here.

 

She giggled at his response.  

 

\- I can see your face from the reflection of the stage lights because you’re so close.  Besides I know what you look like and you’re always cute.

 

The old woman sitting beside him huffed and Ulquiorra side-eyed her. 

 

\- I think the old biddy next to me thinks I’m rude. You’re always gorgeous. Sing for me, okay?

 

\- I always do.

 

With that the jazz combo left the stage.  Ichigo got on and played three numbers. He was, admittedly, very good.  The applause after he played was vigorous. He bowed and returned to the piano bench.

 

When Aizen took the stage and announced Orihime, Ulquiorra sat up straighter in his seat after he put his phone away.

 

Orihime came out and stood in front of the piano with a practiced, serene smile.  Her eyes scanned the crowd and she spotted Ulquiorra. Her mask slipped and her smile became genuine, just for him, and then she curtsied.  After she stood back up, she nodded to Ichigo and began to sing the German song. It was a cheerful, light, sweet melody that suited her classical voice well.  

 

When she finished she was given polite applause and then she began the Italian song.  This one was much darker than the first. It highlighted her acting ability as she emoted the pain of a heartsick lover.  The applause after that piece was less enthusiastic than after the first. Orihime had not been pleased with it either.

 

She cleared her throat before the last song and closed her eyes and smiled before reopening them and nodding to Ichigo.  She looked straight at Ulquiorra as she began Silent Noon and did not look away until her final bow. It was by far the best song she sang.  

 

He had clapped enthusiastically as she bowed. He wanted to stand up. He wanted to whistle and proclaim to the entire audience that this woman was his girlfriend. He didn’t. Ulquiorra refrained. Aizen came back out to declare an intermission and thanked everyone for their attention so far. He didn’t miss the old lady’s haughty sniff. 

 

Ulquiorra grabbed the bag between his legs and was going to file out the door with the rest of the crowd but someone grabbed him by the arm.

 

“Okay, all I heard was her YouTube song but she’s kind of amazing!” 

 

His eyes went wide as he turned around to face Nel. What was she doing here? “I told you not to come here!” His voice hissed from between clenched teeth.

 

“Well, I do what I want. So… Anyway there are other people who are performing today that I wanted to see, like Ichigo. He’s good at playing the piano,” Nel said as he stood beside him.

 

Ulquiorra wanted to roll his eyes at her. “Well you can fuck off now,” he stated.

 

“Dude, I have other friends that are music majors. Calm your tits.”

 

He was offended. “Look, just… Just be nice if you happen to see Orihime,” he said. “In fact why don’t you go find Ivan?”

 

“Who is Ivan?”

 

“Kurosaki?”

 

“Why do you call him Ivan?”

 

“Technically, I call him Ivanhoe,” Ulquiorra explained. “He calls me Oliver or Ollie. It’s a running joke between us.”

 

Nel snorted with laughter. “Dude, dude, dude. Had this been a year ago you would have ripped off someone’s head for getting your name wrong.”

 

“How many people know what your full name is Nelliel?” He was teasing her. It was kind of nice to fall into this camaraderie with her. He wasn’t lulled into a false sense of security though. Ulquiorra knew Nel.

 

“Say that again and I will put my foot up your ass,” she replied. The crowd moved and then Ulquiorra and Nel walked into the lobby. “Where is your girlfriend? I want to tell her good job and then find Ichi.”

 

As she spoke, Ichigo and Orihime turned the corner for the backstage hall.  Both were smiling as people began to greet them.

 

Ulquiorra noticed the orange hair immediately and nudged Nel’s arm. “There is your guy,” he said to her.

 

“He’s not mine.” Nel stood on her tiptoes which made her slightly taller than Ulquiorra. “I think… I think your girlfriend is with him.”

 

It was funny to him because he never found their height a problem like he had with Orihime. He shook his head. He shouldn’t be thinking about that right now. He took a step forward found himself pushed to the side as a woman came barrelling through the people.

 

“Ugh, rude,” Nel said in his ear. 

 

Rude was right. He motioned for her to get in front of him since she had an air of authority around her.

 

“You did it again, Orihime!  Every time you let your emotions get the better of you.  Do you think you know better than Williams? Than Brahms!?  You think that just because you can sustain a note that means you have the discretion to do it in spite of the notations?  You’re embarrassing me, Orihime!” The woman kept going as Orihime’s smile fell off of her face.  

 

Ichigo tried to shrink away unnoticed to no avail.  “And you, young man, should know better than to indulge my niece's whims!  A good accompanist should be able to tell an inferior vocalist when she is out of line!”

 

“Yeah, bye,” was all Ichigo said before escaping, leaving Orihime alone with the screeching woman.  

 

Ulquiorra could hear the woman’s words. It was hard to miss them as she carried on. This must have been the infamous Auntie Claire. His opinion still stood; the woman was an absolute bitch. He scowled as he looked over Nel’s shoulder. The crowd parted enough for him to see that Orihime looked miserable. He prodded Nel to walk forward. 

 

“Stop!” she quietly snapped.

 

“I need you to make a path for me.”

 

“Nah, look.”

 

Ulquiorra looked around her again to see the man who had spoke to him earlier. He frowned.

 

Aizen approached Orihime and put an arm over her shoulder.  “Ah, Ms. Cartwright, what an honor! It’s so nice for you to make the trip to see our little ingenue.”

 

The older woman scoffed.  “It’s good to see  _ you _ Aizen.  How long has it been?  Ten, twelve years? They’ve been kind to you.”

 

“And you Claire.  With any luck Ms. Inoue will take after you, isn’t that right, my dear?” Aizen asked Orihime, his hand drifting down from her shoulders to her ass, giving it a small squeeze.  

 

Orihime balked.  “What?!”

 

“How dare you speak to me like that you ungrateful little—“ the woman cut herself off as she raised a hand to slap the redhead’s insolent cheek.

 

Orihime saw it coming.  She had also seen green hair.  It wasn’t ideal but it was something.  “If you’ll excuse me,” she squeaked, ducking away from the woman’s hand and calling out, “Nel!  How nice of you to come!” She smiled widely with red-rimmed eyes.

 

“Uh...” Nel offered with a smile.

 

Ulquiorra had seen it. He saw how Aizen touched her. She just let it happen. He put the bag into Nel’s hand and disappeared into the crowd. He couldn’t handle this. What about what they said hours ago to each other? Did that not matter? Sure he was hers but apparently she didn’t give a damn when he said he didn’t want anyone else to touch her. He was being irrational, he knew this, but still… It hurt. It stung. Orihime couldn’t stick up for herself. She couldn’t grow a backbone.

 

He would have stepped in and said something but the word possessive was burned into his brain. Had she never said that to him he would have just told both of those people off. As soon as he was outside, Ulquiorra broke into a run, heading for Robinson Tower. He needed to be somewhere alone and quiet for him to think this through.

 

The green-haired woman still had that awkward smile on her face as she felt Ulquiorra move. After several moments passed she held up the bag to Orihime. “Hi! Um, congrats. I think this is for you.” 

 

Orihime sniffed.  “Where is he?”

 

“I don’t know? He gave me this and I think he left?” Nel offered. She reached out and patted Orihime’s arm. “All I know is he handed me this and then he wasn’t behind me. I think… I think he saw that guy. You did great and...” This was really awkward. Why couldn’t Ulquiorra stick around? “I came to see Ichigo play. You two make a nice pair of performers.” 

 

Orihime shook her head and blinked tears out of her eyes. Why did he leave? She needed him.  “Did he give you my keys?“ she asked in a watery voice. She just wanted to get out of there.

 

Nel bit her lip. She shook her head in response. “All he gave me is this. Maybe he went to--” She stopped. Nel knew Ulquiorra. They both had seen what the older man had done to Orihime. She knew he was passionate about Vega. He probably was jealous. “Maybe they’re in the bag?” Nel pushed the bag into Orihime’s hands and then smiled. She had to get out of there. It was too awkward and she still had to congratulate Ichigo. “It was nice to meet you,” Nel said before she turned and walked away.

 

Orihime took the bag and stormed back to her dressing room for her purse and bags, pausing to hiss, “Go to hell, Aizen,” as she passed him.  He narrowed his eyes at her but otherwise remained focused on her aunt. 

 

When Orihime arrived in the dressing room she looked through the bag that Ulquiorra had saved his seat with.  There were flowers in there and a wrapped gift.

 

No keys.

 

No keys in her purse or garment bag nor anywhere in the dressing room.  She locked the door and started to change. She could barely see her words as she texted them because she couldn’t stop crying.

 

\- where did you go?  Do you have my keys?

 

Ulquiorra didn’t look at his phone until he was inside of his room. A whole ten minutes had passed. Fuck. He had left with her keys. Right now, he was in no shape to see or talk to Orihime. Should he text her back? 

 

No. She would probably see his messages as excuses. Oh well. Orihime didn’t exactly conjure confidence within him. Something had been going on between her and the teacher. There had to be something between them.

 

\- had to leave. Too many people. I have your keys. I can leave them at the front desk at your dorm. Sorry.

 

What the hell?  How could he have ditched her?  Her aunt had nearly assaulted her and Aizen had!  Then he left her there with nothing appropriate to wear home and no way to bring her things back.  There was no way she could hike back up to upper campus in three inch heels and three bags in an evening gown with a train.  She was going to have to find a ride or sleep in the green room. She was hungry, too.  

 

In the end she sat and cried until she was too tired to do it anymore and then got a hold of Tatsuki.  She didn’t have a car, but maybe she could bring her some clothes. Her roommate said she would but she couldn’t be there for several hours.  After all the people had left the hall, including her aunt, whose calls went unanswered, Orihime went back out to the dark stage and sat in the dusty black floor to text Ulquiorra the only question she had.

 

\- what the hell?  

 


	22. Withholding

Ulquiorra was on the phone with his mom. “No, I know what’s to be expected of me. I know Mom.”

 

As soon as he sent off the text to Orihime, he called Maria to tell her that he might be able to come out sooner and stay longer. Right now he didn’t want to see Orihime. It felt like she had lied or told him partial truths. Why would people call her a whore and a slut? Why would people say stuff about her if there wasn’t some truth to it? Perhaps she was so tired of Ulquiorra and the way that they had sex that she sought out a more experienced man.

 

The thought stabbed his heart. His phone chimed breaking him out of his thoughts. “Wait, Mom.”

 

He pulled the device away from his head and looked at it. Orihime had texted him again. He frowned as he looked at it. It was clear she didn’t think much of the reason he had given her. 

 

“Mom, just email me, okay? I’ve got things to deal with.”

 

After hanging up, Ulquiorra looked at the message.

 

\- it happens. Don’t expect you to understand.

 

She didn’t.  She waited awhile before she responded.  When she decided to do it she didn’t feel any better.

 

  * I don’t understand.  You saw what he did to me?  I had to go to Nel for help. Why would you abandon me here?



 

He wrinkled his forehead. God, she was dramatic sometimes. Ulquiorra texted her back.

 

\- didn’t abandon you. I know what I saw. You let him grope you in the concert hall and then He grabbed your ass. You let him. You bitched at Ishida for touching you why couldn’t you do the same when he did it?

 

Orihime was offended by his response.

 

  * I didn’t “let” him!  Do you think I enjoy being treated that way?  What was I supposed to do, throw a fit and make a huge scene right before recital and in front of my aunt?  She would have tried to slap me again! She’s already left me 15 messages telling me what an ungrateful bitch I am for running away.  



 

She sent that text and sat there fuming.  Then she sent another one.

 

  * are you going to be like everyone else?  It’s not my fault Aizen is a predator. You of all people should know what it’s like.



 

What? What the hell was Orihime talking about? Ulquiorra shook his head.

 

\- I expected you to have a spine and stand up for yourself as you did with Ishida. Why would I know what it’s like? Wtf does that mean?

 

She rolled her eyes.

 

  * Nel.  She kept you in a relationship you didn’t want because she dangled the best friend card in front of you.  Different circumstances but same mentality. Aizen can get me thrown out of school. My aunt adores him. What can I do except try to avoid him without jeopardizing my future?  What do you expect me to do? Sound the alarm? You know that no one would believe me anyway. If you don’t, who would?



 

Hmph. She didn’t really understand the dynamic between him and Nel. There was a lot of history between them. A lot of baggage to unpack and inspect. It was something that he didn’t want to deal with. It was too soon; too fresh.

 

\- so what you’re going to take his advances without saying anything? Wow. Vega you need to take your own advice. I left your keys at the front desk of your dorm. Sorry.

 

What an asshole, she thought.

 

  * no.  I told you I’m never going back after tonight.  I meant it. My advice to you was shit or get off the pot.  I’m off the pot. And that’s real rich, coming from Mr. “I don't like confrontation.” Anyway, a lot of good my keys do me there.  I hope the green room couches aren’t disgusting because that’s where I’m sleeping tonight. Goodnight.



 

She called Tatsuki and told her not to bother with the clothes; there was a good chance the Fine Arts building would be locked up by the time Tatsuki got there.  She asked that she bring them along with her keys in the morning.

 

He shook his head. 

 

\- You are not. You still care about what that bitch of an aunt thinks about or says to you. Don’t make me feel guilty about your inability to use common sense. it’s not my fault you didn’t bring proper clothing with you. Seems pretty suspect when you only wear underwear and a coat.

 

Orihime scoffed in disgust at his message.  She had no intention to respond. Instead, she went around until she found a switch for the main spotlight on the stage and turned it on.  It shone right on the piano.

 

She remembered something he had told her.  A few minutes later and she had a simple chord progression pulled up on her phone.  She had nothing else to do that night but practice. Using the chord progression, Orihime composed a simple arrangement to Disarm.  She practiced it for an hour and a half until she was satisfied, then set her phone on a music stand facing the piano’s keyboard and bench and hit record.

 

She did not get it right the first time.

 

It took several adjustments and retakes, but at about two in the morning she had something she was pleased with.  She plugged her phone into a charger in the green room and started exporting the video to her YouTube channel, then laid down and fell asleep using her coat as a blanket.

 

***

 

Ulquiorra stayed up late. He was busy recording but it wasn’t a song. His mom sent the details to him. All he would need to do is inform the advisor and the school of his withdrawal. 

 

Ulquiorra didn’t want to do that just yet. 

 

He sighed and let his head thump against the cinderblock wall, staring at the underside of a shelf. His camera was set up on the tripod and was already recording. He could do this. He could do a vlog. 

 

“So, uh, hi.” Ulquiorra gave a wave. “I’m the face and voice behind Obscuras IV. I pronounce it as Obscuras four. I’ve gotten a lot of questions about that. Um, a couple weeks ago my identity was revealed and I knew it was a risk to take while performing live with…” 

 

Take a deep breath, he told himself. Ulquiorra looked away from the camera and waited a moment. “With Vega Strife double zero. With that reveal came some good news and some great news.”

 

Ulquiorra paused again. He didn’t think any of this was good news. None of it was great news. At least not to him. “I’ll be going out to California to sign a deal with Espada Records. Um, I know that my posting schedule had been solid for the past couple of years but as I embark on this adventure, it’ll become more erratic.”

 

“Onto the great news! I have a social media manager now. They’ll be replying to comments and questions on uh, Youtube and the other websites you can find me on,” Ulquiorra said, forcing a hint of a smile on his face. It was quickly dropped as he rubbed his forehead. “I’m no longer with Vega, I think, and I’m going to edit this out but I need to say it. This hurts. I don’t know why, but it does. I have a feeling I lost my other best friend...”

 

He shook his head, trying to conjure a passive mood. “Um, so, thanks for being a fan. Thanks for the comments-- Fuck this sounds like I’m not going to be doing this anymore.” Ulquiorra reached forward and stopped the video. He was being dramatic. He was letting his emotions get the best of him. He and Orihime had a small fight; it was a misunderstanding, but it felt like he had chopped his arm off.

 

Maybe… Maybe he should go talk to Orihime. Maybe he should just talk to her. She said she was going to sleep. It would be useless to try and talk to her. He pressed the record button again then scooted back into position. 

 

“Hey, I’m--lame as fuck and this is stupid!” Ulquiorra stated loudly. A huff left him. “Thanks for supporting me!”

 

He had to heavily edit this video. It was a mess. He was a mess. Ulquiorra was on his fifth cup of coffee when got done editing the video. He sat back and closed his eyes as he listened to his voice and the short blurb. 

 

“So, uh, hi. I’m the face and voice behind Obscuras four. I write it as Obscuras IV. I’ve gotten a lot of questions about that. Um, a couple weeks ago my identity was revealed and I knew it was a risk to take while performing live with Vega Strife double zero.” 

 

Pause.

 

“With that reveal came some good news and some great news. I’ll be going out to California to sign a deal with Espada Records. Um, I know that my posting schedule had been solid for the past couple of years but as I embark on this adventure, it’ll become more erratic.”

 

Another pause.

 

“Onto the great news; I have a social media manager now. They’ll be replying to comments and questions on uh, Youtube and the other websites you can find me on. I’ll make sure to document my time out in Los Angeles in vlogs. Thanks for supporting me. Make sure you subscribe to my channel. Leave comments. I’ll hopefully post another music video next week.” 

 

He rendered the video and uploaded it to YouTube. Then he took a shower. Then he sat down in his computer chair staring at his coffee cup. Ulquiorra knew he wasn’t going to go to speech. He couldn’t. 

 

***

 

Orihime was shaken awake by someone she didn’t know, telling her to get up and get out of the green room. She staggered to her feet and rubbed her swollen eyes, looking around for her stuff and gathering everything up, then checked that her hair wasn’t too crazy.  It was crazy. She hoped there weren’t too many people in the building yet. She grabbed her phone and charger and looked; she was in luck. It was only eight in the morning.  

 

She walked to the lobby barefoot with her coat on over her gown.  What an embarrassment. She was going to miss music theory today. She needed to get home and get cleaned up.  Her body hurt from sleeping on the ancient, lumpy sofa in the green room.

 

She unlocked her phone and called Tatsuki.

 

“Hello?” her roommate groaned.  She clearly had been asleep.

 

“I’m sorry.  Could you come soon to get me?”

 

“What?”

 

“Tatsuki, it’s Orihime.  You were going to come and get me today?”

 

“Oh, shit.  Yeah. Um, okay. Just give me like an hour.”

 

Orihime sighed.  “Nevermind. I’ll just come there,” she said, cutting the call.

 

She decided just to leave her things sitting there in the lobby, except for her purse and the bag from Ulquiorra.  If somebody stole her garment bag, so be it. She put her shoes in the bag with the flowers, undid her hair and put it all up in a ponytail, and tied up her coat.  It was cold, but if she kept to the grass hopefully she wouldn’t wreck her bare feet on the way home.

 

She decided to check her emails.  She was not prepared for what happened when she did.

 

Over three thousand new emails.  All from YouTube comments.

 

What. The. Fuck.

 

She opened the video she had uploaded only hours ago.  

 

Holy shit.  It was #14 on trending.

 

***

 

“Hi. Ulquiorra?”

 

He was barely awake but he had enough time to get to class. “Uh, yeah? Who is this?” he asked in a groggy voice.

 

“Nanao Ise, your new social media manager.”

 

“Okay.”

 

“I’m going to need passwords to all of your accounts or at least access to them. Do you have a Tumblr?”

 

The woman on the other end of the line obviously didn’t comprehend that he wasn’t totally awake. “No, I stopped using that hell site a long time ago. I mostly use Youtube and Instagram,” he said. Ulquiorra groaned as he sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. 

 

“I’m going to need access to both of those and what about a Facebook page? Any other sites? Snapchat?”

 

“You can have access to my YouTube, Snapchat and the Facebook, but you’re not getting my Instagram password. That shit is private. Do you know what time it is?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

He could practically hear the disappointment in her voice as she huffed. “Look, I wake up early and I get to work. I don’t care if you were up all night partying. None of my concern. Get up and go to class,” Nanao barked.

 

Ulquiorra’s temper was already short. He snapped back. “Don’t tell me how to live my life.”

 

“I hate to break this to you, but I am also your personal assistant when you finally get out here. I will be telling you what to do all day long. Welcome to a special brand of hell.”

 

The call ended and a text popped up on his screen.

 

} Add my number to your contacts. Nanao Ise or Demon Overlord. Your pick. By the way, your girlfriend is trending and you’re always trending so you might want to say congrats to her or comment on the video.

 

What?

 

Ulquiorra shook his head as he got dressed and practically stumbled to class. Nothing was making sense. Nothing was right. He wasn’t really all that aware of his surroundings, and he thought he saw Orihime walking, but it really looked like some hobo walking through campus. When he flopped down into the seat beside Nel, Ulquiorra laid his head down on the table.

 

“You look like shit,” she said. “Also… Late.”

 

“Piss off. I was up late.”

 

“I know I saw the video! You’ve gotten almost five hundred thousand views in a matter of hours. You should show your face more, Ulq.” Nel was rather chirpy this morning. “Did you see the other video?”

 

Ulquiorra was watching her with half-closed eyes. “No, what video?”

 

Nel shook her head, sending mint hair swaying side to side. “You mentioned Vega in your video. She posted a video. She sounds fantastic.”

 

That made him sit up. He fished his phone out of his hoodie pocket and pulled up YouTube. Sure enough, his video was trending in the top ten while Vega.Strife00 was hovering in the top fifteen. He realized he _had_ seen Orihime as he walked to class. That wasn’t a homeless person.

 

Fuck.

 

“She was pretty upset yesterday after you left. Why did you leave?” Nel asked.

 

“I don’t want to talk about it. Not right now and not here.” He was looking through everything so his face was pointed down at the phone. 

 

“So you want to skip class? Get some coffee?”

 

Ulquiorra paused in his scrolling and turned his eyes towards Nel. “What?” 

 

“We could go get your car out of the parking garage, maybe hit up a drive through. We could go to a waffle place? There’s a pancake house somewhere around here,” Nel said.

 

This time he squinted at her. “What? Nel, we’re not--”

 

“Dude, you need to talk to someone. You may have burned a bridge with your girlfriend. Acknowledge this and let’s get some breakfast,” Nel said as she stood, grabbing her bag.

 

Ulquiorra sighed and did the same. Nel was right. He needed to talk to someone. He knew what Orihime would say. He knew Nel had plans. He knew that she probably had some scheme up her sleeve. Maybe she didn’t this time. Maybe pigs would fly.

 

***

 

This was not what she wanted.  The response was overwhelming. She had only wanted one person to see this video, and searching her emails revealed that ObscurasIV had not commented. There were no texts or Instagram messages.  

 

She didn’t know what to do.  She really didn’t. He did not seem interested in forgiveness or listening to her side of things.

 

At least it seemed like people liked her video.  She had about ten thousand likes and only seven hundred dislikes.

 

It didn’t matter though.  She got to her room. Tatsuki was gone already.  She stripped out of her clothes and decided to lie down a bit more before getting cleaned up to walk back down to lower campus to get her car.  She decided before she fell asleep to be considerate and let Ulquiorra know she wasn’t going to class. She did it in Instagram. She didn’t want to make it seem like she was expecting an answer right away.

 

Vega.Strife00

I’m not going to speech today.

I don’t feel well.

 

***

 

When he and Nel reached the parking garage and Ulquiorra unlocked his car, he sighed as he slid behind the wheel. He reached for the aux cable and plugged it into his phone. All he had to do was pull up the app and bring up her video. He was about to do that when the message popped up. 

 

Ulquiorra tapped his fingers against his bottom lip as he read the words.

 

ObscurasIV

I’m not going either.

I hope you feel better.

 

After he sent the message to her, he switched over to Youtube and then used his thumb to tap on her video. He closed his eyes, listening to her voice and how it meshed with the piano. It took his breath away hearing her voice. It sounded full of pain and emotion. It wasn’t the best she could do, but Ulquiorra could tell she gave it her all. It was probably the best she could do considering the circumstances. He liked the video and then he left a comment.

 

ObscurasIV

You did great. It sounds wonderful. The acoustics of the concert hall and the simplified piano accompaniment are good. I’ve always said that Disarm is a song that does well in an intimate setting. I don’t think you could get any more intimate than yourself and a piano. Nice job, Veggs. I get it. <3

 

Nel said nothing as she sat there in the passenger seat. “Are you done?”

 

“You have absolutely no patience.”

 

“I’m hangry.”

 

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes before he started the car and drove out of the structure. They settled on one of those country breakfast places, which he wasn’t too thrilled about but Nel made the decisions. He realized he didn’t like that. With Orihime, it was always put up to vote or they decided on stuff together.

 

“No, I want something different,” Ulquiorra said.

 

“Really?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

The two of them ended up in some fast food place. Ulquiorra stood there beside Nel with his arms over his chest. She had tried to initiate conversation several times but he remained silent until they got a number and sat down at a table.

 

“So?”

 

“What’s your motivation? What the hell do you want?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

Nel looked offended. “What?”

 

He sighed. “What do you want from me?”

 

“Uh.”

 

“Nelliel, I know you. What do you want?”

 

“Look I know I was a dick to you. I just want to be your friend again,” she said. “You looked happy with Vega. I wasn’t going to do anything to destroy that.”

 

Ulquiorra sighed. “I don’t know what happened yesterday. I’ve been irritated ever since Orihime had a gig with her guys. We saw my dad and Steve at the place. Comments were made...”

 

“Steve was a total ass to her, wasn’t he?”

 

He nodded. “Good old Steve ruining things. It was more than Steve. It was fucking Kurosaki and his behavior. He acts like he’s entitled to something and when he doesn’t get it, he turns into the biggest douche.”

 

“There are bets going around that Ichi is gay or he’s bi. I know Grimmjow likes both men and women, he told me that. TMG, aka that Michelle Girl, aka Slutchelle, says there’s no way Ichi or Grimmjow like guys. They’re too… manly,” Nel said. “I think Ichigo acts that way to compensate for something.”

 

That made no sense to Ulquiorra. He shook his head. “Then there are all the people online that send me lewd messages and want me to give them attention. I have--”

 

Nel sighed. “They think they have a chance with you. They think they can be Vega Strife. How bad did you fuck up, Ulq?”

 

“I don’t know. I just know that there are these rumors about Orihime being a slut and a whore and the thing with Aizen. Then he had his hands all over her yesterday. She got pissy with Ishida. She could have stood up for herself and she didn’t,” he said. Ulquiorra scoffed. “Then, then, then… Then she had the audacity to compare you to Aizen. She’s badmouthed you so much and I’ve let it slide. She said you dangled our friendship in front of me.”

 

“You didn’t tell her, did you?”

 

“Nel.”

 

“Ulquiorra?”

 

“It’s none of her business.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Really.”

 

Nel sat there and watched him. “Okay.”

 

***

 

Orihime woke up at about two in the afternoon. She took a shower.  She got dressed as though she were going to the gym. She started the walk back down to lower campus.  Her feet were killing her.

 

She looked at her phone as she walked.   Another several hundred more comments. She had close to two-hundred thousand views on her video.  She’d have to go through the comments later. She’d be likely to run into a pole or something if she wasn’t careful.

 

She checked her Instagram messages.  She almost smiled. She still had a heavy feeling in her gut though.  She didn’t want to sit on this and make it worse, so she replied right away.

 

Vega.Strife00

I just woke up.  I feel a bit better.

Not much though.

I’m on my way to get the car.  Any chance you remembered where you parked it?

 

She put her phone into her pocket as she got the the footbridge and went toward the Fine Arts building.  She may as well check to see if her stuff hadn’t been swiped from the lobby while she gave Ulquiorra a chance to respond.

 

***

 

He had picked at his breakfast. Nel had done the same thing. 

 

“So, Tier is having a party tonight. If you’re not busy--”

 

“I have a girlfriend?”

 

“Bring her too?”

 

Ulquiorra dropped Nel back off at the dorm and then sat in the car, reading his notifications. Nanao had sent him another text which he didn’t really care about. He sent her his YouTube and Facebook credentials. That should shut the social media manager up for a few hours.

 

He got Orihime’s message and decided drive to the Fine Arts Building. It took him all of five minutes to get to the other side of the campus. Her Mazda was sitting in the same spot. He decided to park next to it.

 

ObscurasIV

It’s parked next to a Honda with an emerald green paint job.

 

Shockingly, Orihime’s garment bag was where she had left it, but pushed onto the floor and wrinkled.  As she picked it up it felt like everything that was left inside was still there. She raised her brows in surprise as she stood back up with it and turned around to see Tier standing beside her.

 

“Hey Orihime, or do you prefer Vega?”

 

Orihime’s eyes widened as she got over being startled.  “Oh, um, either. Most people call me Orihime or Hime in real life but my boyfriend,” her eyes pinched slightly here.  She didn’t know where they stood right now. Anyway, until she knew for sure either way she would assume the best, “he calls me Orihime or Vega.  Chad from Sado’s calls me Vega. So whatever you like, I’ll answer to.”

 

Tier gave her a rare smile.  “Okay, cool it, Vega. I just wanted to stop and ask if you’re still coming tonight.  Most people will be there sometime after eight. We’d love to have you come and just show your face and meet some people, especially after yesterday. Your concert class went really well. And I saw your YouTube video. That was awesome. Maybe we can do a sing-along tonight or something.  Might be fun. Anyway, give me your number and I’ll text you the address.”

 

The senior soprano did not pull any punches nor did she lack for self-confidence.  Orihime told her her number and Tier called it. “Okay, we’ve got a way to contact each other.”  She took a step closer to Orihime and spoke again in much softer tones, “You’re not the only one who’s been caught in Aizen’s crosshairs.  If you just open up to a few people - let them know your side of the story- girls will come out of the woodwork with their own tales of Handsy McGrabass.  You’re not the only one. I wasn’t always a shark swimming through this lobby. I used to smile at people who don’t deserve it. You’re going to be fine, Vega.”

 

With that she turned and left.

 

Orihime stood there stunned for a few minutes.  She wanted to cry. She wanted to run after the older student and hug her.  Instead, she turned for the door, checking to see if Ulquiorra responded. Green Honda?  Lot of good that did her; it was a big parking lot. Oh well, she thought, walking across the street to the parking lot and scanning the aisles as she went down one side of the parking lot.

 

Okay, so green Hondas weren’t that common.  She spotted it right away when it came into view, and then she recognized her gray Mazda behind it.  She walked, or rather hobbled, toward her car, anxious to drop the garment bag.

 

As soon as Ulquiorra saw Orihime, he shut off the car and opened the door. He leaned against the roof of the car. “Hey,” he called out.

 

Her head turned quickly, not expecting to hear his voice.  “Oh!” she yelped softly, a small hand covering her chest for a moment.  “What are you doing out here?”

 

“Making sure you could find your car?” Ulquiorra shut the door before walking toward her. He took a deep breath before he leaned against the green car again. “There’s lots of gray minivans around this place.”

 

She turned her head from side to side.  There were no other gray minivans around.  “Okay…” She still didn’t know where they stood.  “Thanks for the flowers.”

 

He was looking at the ground but he brought his eyes up. “You deserved them. You did a great job yesterday. Did you open the other thing?”

 

“No. I didn’t think it would be appropriate, under the circumstances.”  Her face got hot right away as she admitted that.

 

Oh. So she was just as confused as he was with where they stood. Were they a couple? Were they not a couple? Ulquiorra stood there for a moment thinking about all the words they said to each other. He thought about all the messages and texts. He gave himself to Orihime because he loved her. He was interested in her. “We’re going to let one little fight tear us apart?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

“I don’t want it to,” she said, tears welling in her eyes but not falling.  “I don’t know how this happened.”

 

Ulquiorra covered the remaining distance between them, placing his hands on her waist. “We’re letting people that do not matter get between us. I’ve been distracted since the thing at Sado’s this past week. The Ishida thing; I thought you’d be able to stand up to anyone like that. You got mad at me though.”

 

She shook her head.  “I wasn’t mad. I didn’t like that you just let it happen and didn’t seem to care but I wasn’t mad about it. It was easy for me to stand up to Ishida.  He’s such a weirdo. I’m sure he has people telling him to back off every day, and he can’t do anything to me. It’s different when I’m up against my advisor and department head and personal ass-kisser of my aunt’s,” she sighed and looked down then.  She still hadn’t listened to Claire’s voicemails.

 

“I didn’t want to seem possessive. You might have said you were sorry about that, but it still sticks with me.”

 

“I wish I had never said it, but then what kind of relationship would we have if we had to hide our feelings from each other?”  She took a deep breath. “I like it if you feel protective of me. I don’t like feeling controlled. It’s kind of a blurry line sometimes.  I don’t explain it well. But I haven’t felt controlled by you. I mentioned the possessiveness thing as an observation, not a judgment. I didn’t mean to say I felt like you treated me as a possession.  It was more just a mood you were projecting. I’m sorry I’m not good at explaining myself.”

 

Ulquiorra used his hand and nudged her face. He wanted her to look at him. “That’s a line I don’t want to cross with anyone, especially you. Orihime, I love you. I didn’t want to overstep a boundary. I also don’t want to come off as a crazy boyfriend. I don’t want to be Nel. You’re allowed to have friends, but I can’t put them in their place.”

 

“I don’t think you understand.  Ishida isn’t my friend. He’s a creepy stalker. The only time I thought you were anywhere approaching crazy was when you ditched me last night.”

 

He bent his head down and nuzzled the side of her face. “Woman, I panicked. I saw what Aizen did to you. I saw him touch you and I got jealous. I know I can’t punch him. Mr. Non-confrontational, remember? I figured you would--I don’t know. I got pissed off. Between that and the rumors...” He sighed.

 

“You don’t trust me.”  She sighed. “I’ve never so much as looked at another guy since the day we met in class.  I don’t know what else I can do.”

 

“I feel like you don’t trust me either,” he said. “This entire thing with Nel. So what if she wants to be my friend again? I’m with you… right?”

 

She met his eyes for the first time since the conversation began.  She wanted to say yes, but it wasn’t that simple. She couldn’t answer for him.  “I’m with you. I can’t answer the question of whether you’re with me. All I know is that you chose her over me yesterday. You knew I was nervous.  You knew I was unhappy because of Claire and Aizen and how that recital was supposed to be my “last hurrah”, but you invited _her_. When I expressed my displeasure, you made it about you.  You made it about _you and her._   You acted like my feelings on the matter were less important.”  

 

She stopped.  She was supposed to be smoothing things over and she was just tearing the wound open again.  She shook her head at herself. It wouldn’t do to slap a bandaid on everything and then let things fester.  “I know we weren’t together before the beginning of last month, and I know you were technically with her before then, but I feel like I’ve always been competing with her and it’s exhausting sometimes.  Again, I’m not explaining myself well.” she leaned against the door of her car. “Am I making any sense?’

 

He shook his head. It probably wouldn’t be good to tell her that the day before they had made out the first time, Nel had been in his bed. He also thought it wouldn’t be a good idea to argue with her about the entire thing. “I was only with her because we never discussed things like that as Vega and Obscuras. We never discussed our feelings for each other. I didn’t even know if--You’re right, I just wanted to see Nel knocked down a couple of pegs. I wanted to see how low she would stoop for my forgiveness. It was petty of me.”

 

Ulquiorra looked at her before he kissed her gently. “You don’t have to compete against her. You’re so far ahead of Nel that she can’t touch you. You’re my pizza topping that I like,” he said then took a step back. 

 

Orihime looked up at him after that.  She wanted to believe him. It wasn’t adding up, though.  There were pieces of the puzzle missing. Whether or not that was important was unclear to her.  “Did you forgive her?”

 

“She wants me to, but I haven’t yet,” Ulquiorra admitted. “We talked it over this morning when we had breakfast. I didn’t feel like going to class and she wanted to flap her mouth.”

 

“Oh.  That’s why - this is your car.”  Orihime had to look at it. She had to see the backseat where he had told her he made out with Nel all the time.  It was never going to work. He was blind if he thought it could. “Do you really think you can be friends with her again?  Like actual friends, not this perpetual cat and mouse thing?”

 

“Nel and I have a lot of history between us. A lot. I know her too well to trust her fully, so do I think we can be friends? No, not really. Probably not. She’ll be waiting for one of us to fuck up,” Ulquiorra stated. “And yes, Orihime, this is my car. I see that look on your face. I assure you, it’s as clean as my dorm room.”

 

“We will fuck up, you know.  That’s what people do. We all fuck up sometimes.  How vigilant do I have to be to balance this non-friendship/relationship sabotage thing with us?  I mean, it was less than twenty-four hours ago that we were lying in bed together, feeling like we had the world at our feet and nothing could come between us and then she waltzes in and turns everything on its head in an instant, and that’s just so she can try to get your forgiveness.  She never apologized to me, by the way. Never intended to, I’m sure. I just see you slipping back into the same Obscuras four who ignored my advice and kept falling under her spell. It’s happening now.”

 

Ulquiorra turned his head away from her, trying to keep his cool. “It wasn’t her. I’ve been feeling like this since I found you and Kurosaki fighting. The way he crowded you and is constantly trying to worm his way in. It doesn’t sit well with me. You’ve got more predators on your side than I do mine. I can ignore the internet bitches and right now, that’s all Nel is.”

 

“That’s not true.  You don’t invite internet bitches to my concert or go to breakfast with them.  You’re being dishonest with yourself and with me if you compare her with them. And that’s the other difference; I don’t go out with my “predators”.  I used to be in a band with Kurosaki. It’s defunct. Besides, I’m pretty sure he’s gay.”

 

“Wouldn’t surprise me. Nel pretty much confirmed that this morning,” he said. Ulquiorra turned back to her. “So what it comes down to is that we don’t trust each other because of our social circles and who wants to be in them. If you think I’m going to be the same person I was before you came around, you’re wrong. This is the longest I’ve kept Nel out of my life. Yeah, I see her during class. She messages me and I roll my eyes at it. Today is the longest I’ve spent around her since I’ve met you.”

 

“Technically I only have a social square, and it’s me, you, Tatsuki and Kurosaki.  Now that my concert class is over, I’ve only got you and my roommate. I was invited to this party tonight though. I ran into Tier inside.  I think I should go. She told me that Aizen is pretty well known for pulling the kind of bullshit he did to me yesterday, and if I go to the party and open up about it, girls will come out of the woodwork and corroborate my story.  She basically said once I appear sympathetic the rumors will stop. I don’t know, but it’s worth a shot.”

 

His mouth formed a thin line. “Funny you mention that. Nel invited _us_ to go to Tier’s tonight.”

 

“Do you want to go?”

 

“We’re together, right? It wouldn’t look good to just have you go and me not be there,” he said. Ulquiorra decided not to pick any more arguments with Orihime. He didn’t want to get worked up.

 

“Well, _I_ am inviting you.  As Tier’s guest, not Nel’s.”  She smiled for the first time since this discussion began.  “On another note, I sang you a song…” she trailed off and blushed.  “I didn’t mean for anyone else to see it but you.”

 

A small smile appeared on his face. “Uh, I saw it. I commented on it. I think… I think I may have caused it? I mentioned you in a video I uploaded last night.”

 

She smirked.  “That explains it. I didn’t know you commented.  There are a lot to go through and the last time I searched for your username, which I will admit to doing because I am not cool,  I didn’t find anything.”

 

He kissed her again. “I did it around… Uh… ten this morning? Maybe earlier? I don’t remember. I was pretty upset when I listened to it. Nel said I hurt you.”

 

She looked at him but didn’t say anything.  Her eyes would speak for her if he wanted to know the truth.  Or he could ask. Did he want to live in denial? Of course he had hurt her.  Deeply.

 

Ulquiorra nodded. He knew. He could see it. He couldn’t tell her that she had hurt him, too, by just accepting Aizen’s bullshit. “Okay,” he said. “I’m going to go put this thing back into the parking garage since it offends you so much.”

 

“Hold up.  This isn’t going to work.  We can’t keep tiptoeing around each other.  I know you don’t like confrontation, Ulquiorra, but you’ve got to face me or we’re not going to have anything left to hold onto.”  She sighed. He wasn’t being forthright with her. “Do you love me?”

 

“You know I do. I’m not tiptoeing around you. You’ve heard stories about my car. Several stories. And I can see that you don’t like it,” Ulquiorra stated. “I’m not avoiding confrontation either. I think it would be best to continue this conversation where we are both comfortable and feel secure, I guess.”

 

She raised her brows and nodded.  “I can agree to that, for sure. My feet are killing me.  Do you want me to follow you to wherever you store this thing and give you a ride back?”  She contemplated asking if he would mind if she ditched him there but didn’t think it would be productive.

 

He declined the offer. “No, I can walk back. It’s not that far. Where do you want me to meet you?” Ulquiorra asked. He just felt like there was an overflow of resentment and other hostile emotions at the moment.

 

“Um, if you want you can come to my place. I have to eat something.  I haven’t eaten for like thirty hours.”

 

“Okay, go eat. I’ll meet you at your dorm.”


	23. We'll Be Alright

 

Orihime went back to her dorm and ate something, then lay down to wait for Ulquiorra to show up.  As she lay there, she thought about the conversation they had just had and how it made her feel. If she had to sum it up into one word, it would be uneasy.

 

He clearly didn’t trust her.  She did not really trust him either.  A lot of what he said sounded like excuses to her.  The worst part, to her, anyway, was that she had done nothing to warrant his lack of trust.  He suspected her based on rumors and the actions of other people. He, on the other hand, had gone behind her back to invite Nel to her performance.  He had been glued to his phone for nearly a week. He was tiptoeing around sensitive topics. He clammed up and claimed that things were fine that clearly weren’t.  It wasn’t good.

 

He drove back to his assigned parking spot and then just sat in the car. The last time he was in it was when he and Nel arrived at the school. That was at the end of August. It was now the middle of October. Where the hell had time gone? Ulquiorra let his head fall against the headrest and looked up at the roof of the car. 

 

It was a touchy subject. His history with Nel went deeper than just best friends and almost lovers. There was a deep, dark past to keep hidden. If people kept bringing it up, it made him think of it. A relapse could occur, but it seemed like Nel had already broken their promise to each other. It would be easy for Ulquiorra to break his. There was no one lording over him. There were no watchful eyes. 

 

He wouldn’t though. He had promised his father.

 

Picking up his phone, Ulquiorra opened Instagram and tapped out a message. It was sent to Orihime.

 

ObscurasIV

At one point in time you told me you weren’t good.

WTF did that mean?

 

Vega.Strife00

Not a text-based conversation to have.

Are you coming over?

 

Shaking his head, Ulquiorra groaned. He really didn’t want to walk into her room and have words with her. He was more eloquent with written words rather than spoken ones. Orihime wanted to make him uncomfortable. She wanted to make it awkward.

 

ObscurasIV

I’ll be there. I just wanted to know stuff.

 

He got out of the car and locked it, making sure to press the button on his key twice to engage the alarm. About ten minutes later, he was walking up to Albertson Hall.

 

“Come in,” she said as he knocked and sat up on her bed.  She had not been looking forward to this, but it was a necessary conversation.

 

Ulquiorra entered Orihime’s room, feeling a mix of unease and nervousness in his stomach. He leaned against the door, his hands behind his back and looked at her. “Okay. I don’t trust you. You don’t trust me. There is a lot that we don’t know about each other. There are things I don’t want to tell you concerning Nel. I’m sure there are things in your past that you don’t want to tell me,” he said.

 

Her mouth pressed into a firm line before she spoke.  “It’s true there are things I'm not proud of and things I’d rather forget.  But I’m going to tell you anyway. It would not be fair for me to demand your trust if I didn’t,” she said, then waited.  It may be possible he didn’t want her trust. He certainly did not seem willing to earn hers.

 

“That’s the thing. You don’t have to tell me. You get bent out of shape every time I get a message or a comment on a video because I’m focused on my phone. How are you going to handle fame?”

 

“That is patently untrue.  You’ve always gotten comments and whatever and it never bothered me.  It bothered me this past week because it was uncharacteristic, and then I come to find out you’d invited Nel to my performance behind my back.  I’d say I was justified to be suspicious,” she said evenly. She was not emotional yet. She was presenting her argument in a rational manner. 

 

Ulquiorra looked at the wall and clenched his jaw. This wasn’t good. He didn’t like this. He did not like confrontation. “I uninvited her. I told her not to come. She told me she came to watch Ichigo perform,” he said.

 

“You totally misunderstand.  I don’t care so much that she was there.  I care that  _ you _ invited her.  You didn’t ask me if I would mind.  You did it for a reason that disregarded my… um… happiness?  Wellbeing? I don’t know. It was disrespectful of my feelings and our relationship, we’ll put it that way,” she calmly explained.

 

“Okay.” Ulquiorra’s face was almost blank. He didn’t know what she wanted him to say, so he decided on a passive attitude was the best thing to do.

 

“Okay?”  She wasn’t going to let it slide.

 

“Okay as in okay. It was your day to be a diva and I took that away from you,” he said as he frowned, “but your aunt already did that by coming. It was never your day. I ruined it all by conversing and promoting you to someone.”

 

She sighed and shook her head.  Was he being obtuse on purpose? “You really don’t get it.  The building could have burned down and cancelled the whole thing.  I don’t care about being a “diva”, Thanks so much for that assessment.  I care about you thinking my feelings are not as important as yours. I care about you sneaking around with your ex-girlfriend behind my back.  It does not breed confidence.”

 

He scoffed. “I wasn’t sneaking around. That implies that I’m A, interested in Nel and B, cheating on you. I never snuck around with anyone. You’re the one that’s sneaking around not wanting your aunt to find out about your second life.”

 

“My aunt has nothing to do with us.  You did sneak around. I asked you why you were on your phone so much.  You never mentioned talking to Nel, except to say she apologized.” She paused and sighed.  She was not going to get him to see things from her perspective, she could already see that. “Well, anyway, you don’t want to try to see things from my side so there is nothing else to say about it.”

 

He wanted to tell her that he didn’t have to tell her why he was on his phone so much. Ulquiorra wanted to tell her that she didn’t pay his phone bill so Orihime didn’t have the right to question anything. He refrained, knowing that would lead to bigger problems. Saying all that meant he had something to hide and he didn’t have anything to hide. 

 

He was irritated. She wanted to just forget the root of her own issues concerning her aunt. That woman did have something to do with them. The mention of Claire’s name sent Orihime into a tizzy and upset her. “Okay,” he said. He decided to go along with whatever she said, just like he always did with Nel.

 

This was going worse than she anticipated.  Without a miracle, she didn’t see much hope of them coming to an understanding.  He was shutting down just like he had in the parking lot. She was reminding of her conversation with Jon Cifer at his coffee shop.  He told her that Ulquiorra had let her in, but since then, he had quietly shut her out at some point. She sighed. Would it be worth it to tell him her secrets?  Probably not, at least not the big ones.  Well he did seem interested in her aunt, so she took out her phone.  

 

“You wanna know why Claire doesn’t matter?”   She didn’t wait for a response. She tapped the button to play her voicemails and put it on speaker.

 

The vicious, biting voice of her aunt growled on the playback.  

 

“Whore!  Just like your slut mother, giving up everything just for some man.  You’ll never amount to anything!”

 

“I hope you realize that you’ve dug your own grave.  Aizen will never accept you back as a student now!”

 

“You won’t see a penny until you apologize!”

 

“Ha!  You call that singing?  That awful display on the web?  Dreadful. You have no talent.”

 

“That’s it, Orihime.  I’m washing my hands if you.  You want to ignore my wishes? You want to do whatever you want?  Go ahead. You’re cut off. Go walk the streets for all I care.”

 

Orihime cut the line, tired of hearing the bitch go on.  She looked at Ulquiorra with a bored expression. “There.  See? There is nothing to be done about the crazy bitch.”

 

“Why does your aunt think you’re a whore?” Ulquiorra asked. There had to be some story behind this. There had to be a reason. “I know it’s not because of me.”

 

“Because I dared to find happiness in love and not on a stage.  It’s not because of you in particular. It’s because of Mr. Brazil.  It’s because of the other guys I dated after him. It’s because I wanted friends my own age.  It’s because of you, too. It’s because I refuse to get down on my knees and choke on some old guy’s cock to get a role.  She thinks that makes me weak and  not dedicated or willing to make the sacrifices for my art like she did.” Now she was emotional.

 

That made no sense to Ulquiorra. None at all. If Orihime’s aunt called her a whore and there were rumors about her being a whore and a slut… It wasn’t his business. It was none of his business how many men she had sex with. It bothered him though. She got on birth control to have sex. She said she was sad because when Brazil went back she wouldn’t get dicked down as much. Orihime had told him how fucking thirsty she was for him. It made no sense to him.  “Okay.”

 

“Okay?” she looked at him like he was an imbecile.

 

“I don’t understand why your aunt would call you a whore for not sleeping with guys, but okay,” he replied. “You were going to tell me something at my dad’s house. About how you’re not good. Want to explain that now?”

 

There was no way she was going to talk about that now.  He would probably go out and tell Nel, who who tell everyone on Earth.  Still... “I meant I am not perfect.  I’m not some innocent little princess. Mostly, I meant that I wasn’t a virgin when we met.  Including you I’ve had sex with four guys. I thought I was in love with Mr. Brazil. The other two I liked and wanted to see if it would lead to anything.  They were learning experiences.”

 

That was three guys too many for Ulquiorra. The fact that she had sex because she just liked the guys was disturbing. Sex wasn’t a learning experience, at least not to him it wasn’t. It was supposed to be something that was shared and special. “What was--What am I? Do you think you’re in love with me? Am I learning experience?” Fuck. He hadn’t meant for those questions to come out.

 

“Why don’t you answer that question for yourself, about yourself, before you ask me?  I do love you, Ulquiorra. I know enough about it to be able to tell the difference. You, on the other hand, are willing to throw away everything we have for some petty one-up on your ex.  You leave me stranded after being molested by a superior. You refuse to be honest and talk to me. Do you think that’s love, Ulquiorra? Because I have my doubts.”

 

Now she wanted to pull that card? No. “You don’t get to play the being molested by a teacher thing because if your aunt didn’t matter, you would have said something or spoken up when it happened. If you didn’t care about your aunt, you would have done something then. I didn’t leave you stranded. You’re the one who chose to dress in almost nothing to walk into a public place, Orihime. I am like this. I clam up. I don’t want to talk to people. I had hoped you had an idea of what I was like before we started this. You’re trying to change who I am,” Ulquiorra stated.

 

“No I’m not.  You are free to walk away.  I wore what I wore because I had a ride, you see.  It’s not like I went in there all willy-nilly half-dressed to show off.  There was a purpose. You did ditch me. And before you judge me for how I reacted to Aizen, why don’t you go out to LA and find some agent who is supposed to be working for you and has a lot of power over you try to coerce you into sex acts and then tell me how it feels, because you have no fucking clue!”

 

“I have Nel if I want to experience that, remember?” He crossed his arms over his chest and huffed. He then spoke with an even and calm voice. “There is a lot of invalidation going on between us. I don’t want to walk away from you. Maybe we need a couple of days to sit and think about things. To think about where we need to be or where we want to be.”

 

“Okay.”

 

Ulquiorra gave a nod. “I’ll see you at Tier’s party, or did you want to go to it together?”

 

“Yeah, I still want to go together,” she answered without a doubt.  Despite her lack of confidence in their relationship, she wanted to hold on.  Maybe the party would be a good chance to see each other in a new light.

 

He pushed himself off the door and walked over to Orihime. Ulquiorra bent over at the waist and touched his forehead to hers. He stayed that way for a moment. “Text. Call. Message. Okay? Open that present I got you. I’ll be back in a couple of hours.”

 

The touch opened her floodgates and she started to choke and sputter on suppressed sobs.  She nodded.

 

***

 

It took Orihime about ten minutes to calm down after Ulquiorra left.  She turned to the bag with the roses in it and took them out, finding a cup large enough to hold them and filling it with water.  The roses were somewhat wilted already, but still salvageable, she hoped.

 

Next she opened the gift.  One side of her lips lifted into a smirk to see a black mesh teddy with lace and criss-crossed ribbons going up the front from navel to neck. He supported her bad habit, apparently.  It gave her mixed feelings. It seemed like the same things he liked about her were the things that made him distrust her. She took a deep breath and shook her head. They would take a couple days.  Calm down. Let cooler heads prevail.

 

She decided to take some care in choosing her clothing for the party.  She didn’t want to send the wrong message. She considered several options and settled on something somewhat conservative; black ankle-length jeans, a black long-sleeved merino wool crewneck sweater, and black ballet flats. Very Audrey Hepburn. She even did her hair up into a ponytail.

 

She still had time to kill. She painted her fingernails in a nude color.  She did some light makeup. She got on her computer and started going through the comments on her video.  The attention had started to die down. She was still getting plenty of new comments but it was not nearly close to the same rate it had been coming in at that morning.

 

Unsurprisingly, Ulquiorra’s comment had risen to the top.  There were over five-hundred replies to his message already.  Orihime decided to add her own.

 

_Vega.Strife00 wrote_ :

 

Thank you, ObscurasIV.  I took your advice. I found a song that spoke to me and made it my own.  I sang it for you, so I’m glad you enjoyed it. <3

 

Then she began replying to other messages, liking some and ignoring others. There were far too many for anyone to expect her to respond or acknowledge each one.

 

After about an hour, she decided to let Ulquiorra know her status.

 

  * I’m ready to go whenever you are. Tier said people mostly showed up after 8, so let me know when you want to go.  I’ll drive.



 

Ulquiorra skipped eating. He didn’t feel like putting anything into his body that would come back up. Instead, he took a shower. He stood there until the water got cold, thinking. After putting on his bathrobe he went back to his room, surprised to see Nel blocking his door. This wasn’t what he needed at the moment. “Can you please go away?” he asked.

 

“No, you seemed pretty perturbed this afternoon when you dropped me off,” she said.

 

“Well, yeah. My relationship with Orihime is in the fucking toilet and--”

 

“Why?”

 

Why? The hell if Ulquiorra knew. It was obvious they both had made mistakes. Huge mistakes. He stared at Nel. “Please move. I need to get dressed,” he said in a tired voice. She put her hand on his shoulder before she left and Ulquiorra turned his head to watch her retreat.

 

Once he got inside his room, he saw that his phone was yet again going crazy. This time it was from Vega’s video. Didn’t these people get the fact that he wasn’t interested in anything? There were multitudes of comment with people saying they could sing for him and do a better job or other borderline insulting comments about Vega. There were porn bots. There were people saying awww that they made a cute couple.

 

Were they a couple?

 

Then Ulquiorra saw her comment. She had sung the song for him. She even added a heart. He got her text. 

 

\- If you want to come over, I’m getting ready. Thanks for the comment. <3

 

She got his reply and grabbed a jacket, her purse, and her keys.  She already had her phone, and she replied on her way down the stairs.

 

  * on my way. <3



 

She got into her car and drove to Robinson, parking in the fifteen minute spot, figuring it didn’t matter much if she got ticketed, then rode the elevator up to his room and knocked.

 

He didn’t expect her to be there that fast. He was still deciding on what to wear. Ulquiorra walked over to the door and opened it to peer out to make sure it was Orihime and not Nel. He almost sighed in relief and moved so that she could come in. “Hey,” he said.

 

“Hi, sorry to get here so fast. Looks like you could have used a few more minutes, but I was anxious to say something. You were right. This was our first big fight, and a couple days to decompress and just think about it with a bit of distance to figure out our own feelings is a good idea.  For tonight, though, I’d like to try to relax and pretend yesterday never happened and just enjoy meeting new people and having a nice time out together. Not like  _ actually  _ forget, just set it aside as something to revisit in a few days.  What do you think?”

 

That was sound and logical advice. Ulquiorra nodded. “Yeah, I need a few more minutes,” he said. “I’m frazzled right now. I need to do laundry and Nel was here. I told her to get lost. You’re right, though. This is a huge bump in the road for us and stepping back from it… We can figure it out.”

 

She smiled at him and nodded.  “Good. Alright, well, I’m parked in the loading zone so I’ll just go wait in the car so I don’t get ticketed.  See you down there.”  

 

It was force of habit that caused her to take the two steps toward him, stand on her toes and kiss him.  She backed up with a slightly pinched smile until she reached the door. “Okay, see you in a little while.”

 

Ulquiorra wanted to pin her against that door and kiss the breath out of Orihime. He didn’t. He needed to show some restraint and maturity in this matter. Taking things to that level wouldn’t be wise; he needed to stop thinking with his dick and hormones. “I’ll be quick, but,” he paused and shook his head. “Never mind. I’ll be down as soon as possible.”

 

She wanted to know what he was going to say but she didn’t want to press her luck.  “Okay,” she said and smiled at him before leaving the room.

 

He finally pulled a pair of black distressed jeans on. Ulquiorra threw on a white t-shirt and then pulled out his leather jacket. It was October. It was dark out. It was probably cool outside. All he added was his watch and the a spray of the scent Orihime liked so much. He then sat down on his bed, pulling on his boots. He gathered all of his stuff and then locked the room door. He fiddled with his outfit, straightening the sleeves of his jacket as it came to a stop at the lobby. 

 

He saw the people sitting out there look as he walked through. There were whistles. There were catcalls. Ulquiorra ignored all of them. He left the building and walked towards where Orihime was parked. He got into the car and looked at her before tucking his hair behind his ear. He was going to give into himself just this once. 

 

Leaning over, he pulled her into a long kiss, his tongue parting her lips, and when it felt like he couldn’t breathe, Ulquiorra pulled back.  

 

“Wow,” she said, face turning pink.  “Thanks. What was that for?” she asked, slightly out of breath.

 

“I just wanted to kiss you.” Ulquiorra ran his thumb over her bottom lip then smiled. “I guess, it’s payback for earlier when you kissed me?”

 

She looked down at her lap, blush deepening.  “Payback, huh? You look nice, by the way. Oh, and thank you for the gift.  It is a very nice  _ bad habit _ .”

 

He put his hand against his face because he could feel himself blushing. “Uh, thanks. I was going to get you another one, but it felt kind of excessive? I don’t know.”

 

She looked back up at him and grinned.  “Yeah, maybe not excessive, but then I’d have to decide which was my favorite and I don’t want to make one feel bad.”  She breathed a little audible exhale. “You are cute. I love you. Shall we?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. “You’re adorable and love you too. Let’s go.”

 

Orihime drove the ten minutes to Tier’s place, which would only have taken four or five minutes had they not encountered every possible red light on the way there.  “So, I wonder who is going to be there,” she said at the second red light, trying to make light conversation. “I sure hope creepy Ishida doesn’t show up.”

 

He smiled. “I think Nel will be there. And don’t worry about the creeps; I’m there to be your designated driver and bodyguard,” he said. “Tonight is about relaxing.”

 

“Maybe you want to add cockblock six-thousand to your list of abilities.  The last thing I want tonight is unwanted attention. But, hopefully the outfit does the trick.  Does this say, “don’t talk to me I’m a jaded old crone” to you? Or do I need one of those two-foot long cigarette holders for that to work?” she giggled.

 

His brow raised and Ulquiorra scrunched his face up. “Ew, smoking is disgusting.”

 

“I only asked if I needed the holder, not the cigarette, but good to know you don’t like smoking, either.”

 

“You look fine. It’s a bit conservative, but you still look like you could kick some knees and take names,” Ulquiorra teased.

 

“You callin’ me short, Cifer?” she asked with a scoff and a faux-offended tone.

 

He smirked at Orihime. “I prefer short girls, so yes, I’m calling you short. You’re tiny. That eight inches in height difference will matter one of these days,” Ulquiorra replied.

 

“How do you figure?” she asked, suspicious.

 

Wasn’t he going to behave? Ulquiorra had to scold himself. “Uh, I plan on us exploring that whole oral thing soon.”

 

She snort-laughed.  “Not pulling any punches tonight, huh?  Alright, Hotshot, we’ll see.” The old nickname she had used for him fell from her lips like she had never stopped saying it.  It made her smile and relax. Things weren’t that bad; they still liked each other. They just needed to work on things.

 

“C’mon you liked it when I did it, didn’t you?”

 

“Uh, yeah, obviously,” she replied. “You needed to work on your patience, though, as I recall.”  She smirked. If he was going to tease her, then turnabout was fair play.

 

“Oh? I need to work on my patience?” Ulquiorra asked. “I have an infinite well of patience.”

 

“Ha!  You did not when I went down on you,” she stopped herself.  Right. That had not been a particularly pleasant memory for either of them. “I mean, I know we never got to finish that experiment but…” she played it off as something lighthearted.

 

Yeah that memory made him cringe. He had been in a sour mood that night because of Kurosaki yelling at Orihime. He’d gotten into the same mindset he had when he’d been with Nel. Rough. Uncaring. Impatient. It was a train of thought he didn’t enjoy. Ulquiorra cleared his throat. “I might want to work on the patience thing concerning you,” he said.

 

She smiled and shook her head.  Water under the bridge. “Well, maybe, but hey - at least I know you’re interested.  Oh, I think this is-- yeah this is the street. Can you keep an eye out for the house with the Ravenclaw flag in the window and the number 6671, Ernie?”

 

Ulquiorra told her when he saw the place. It looked like the party was just getting started, though or maybe it was in full swing. He had no clue. He’d never been to a party with people his age milling around and hanging out.

 

“Okay, I’ll just park over here,” she said, finding a spot that had just opened up in front of a neighboring house.  “Rock ‘n’ roll parking, this spot,” she laughed as she turned off the ignition and opened her door.

 

He climbed out of the car after she got out and looked up at the place. He would be a musician with a contract in a few weeks. He would have to get used to parties and what not. “Ready?” he asked.

 

She smiled at him and nodded.  “Are you? You look concerned. C’mon, I’ll protect you,” she said, grabbing his hand and giving it a soft tug.  “It’s just a regular house. I’m sure there are places to hide out if you need a breather. Oh, also, if you need to leave at any point just let me know and we can go.”

 

“I don’t want to ruin your fun Orihime. This is to help you out. I just need to get over myself,” he said, following her. “I mean, what I told you in that one email about the fact that I don’t party or drink wasn’t a lie. I’ve never been to a party and I’ve never drunk.”

 

“Don’t drink if you don’t want to.  Nobody said you have to. Besides, no one can look down on you, you’re Obscuras-fucking-four,” she said and flashed a grin in his direction. “As for the socializing bit, just focus on one face at a time.  It’s much easier that way.”

 

He snorted. “I’m not Obscuras IV here. I’m just some dude who goes to college and has no clue what they want to do with the rest of his life.”

 

“Sorry, sweetheart, the cat’s out of the bag.  You’re Obscuras IV. The worst they might do is ask you to do a sing-along.”

 

“A what? I am not gonna perform in public. Especially since the last time we did something live it was recorded and I was outed,” Ulquiorra stated.

 

“No, not a performance.  A sing-along. It’s usually when some douche canoe who can play three chords gets drunk enough to pick up a guitar and start playing “Free Falling” and suddenly everyone becomes Tom Petty.  It  _ can _ be fun.”

 

That raised his eyebrow. There was no way he’d ever join in something like that. “Okay, but if they start playing Freebird, I’m out.” He smiled.

 

She stopped walking and turned to face him, her expression deadly serious.  “Our rule stands. Freebird equals  _ the _ bird,”  she said, slowly raising her middle finger in his periphery vision and then bursting into a peal of laughter.  “Come on, let’s go inside, it’s chilly."

 

Once they entered the house, Ulquiorra was hit with a panicked sensation which he quickly stamped down. A group of people, to him, were called a “Hell to the No”. Even when Steve and his dad threw parties, Ulquiorra usually made his rounds and then barricaded the door to his room or went to Nel’s to escape the noise and inane rambling. He was sure he could wander off and find a quiet corner to himself for a few minutes, but that meant leaving Orihime to the wolves, if there were any around.

 

“LADIES!  LESS BOUNCE, MORE SHIMMY!” a man with long brown hair yelled over a group of dancing girls holding cans of tropical-colored spiked sparkling water drinks. “Seriously, they’re going to break a floor joist,” Orihime and Ulquiorra could hear him complain as she led the way through the first room, which appeared to be a dining room bereft of a table, that opened into the front hall, and into another that looked like a den.  Inside, Tier and Starrk sat in papasan chairs, each holding a beer and talking in only slightly more animated voices than usual, until Tier looked up and saw Orihime. 

 

“You came! Oh, good. Come over and get a drink,” the blonde said, leaning forward slightly.

 

Orihime smiled at her and then at Ulquiorra.  “Thanks for the invite, Tier. Um, do you have any water, actually?  I’m really thirsty and I don’t want to slam anything right away,” Orihime asked.  It was a lie. She didn’t want to drink at all tonight. She was not the kind of person who could drink to forget her problems.  On the few occasions she ever had tried, it only made her feel worse. She turned to Ulquiorra. “Do you want one, too?”

 

He shook his head. He wasn’t going to drink anything, including the water. “I’m good. I’ll get something to drink when we head back. Enjoy yourself though.”

 

Her brows crept together momentarily.  It was a good thing she didn’t plan on drinking.  They probably wouldn’t be there long. He looked miserable and they had just arrived.  She nodded to him and took the water bottle that Starrk held out to her. “Thanks,” she said.  “So, who’s coming tonight?”

 

“Well, Kurosaki and Hailey and Grimmjow are already here.  Grimm is setting up in the basement; he’s going to do a set in a couple minutes apparently.  You should have been here last week though, There was this guy who played at Sado’s who was absolutely insane.  Anyway, getting sidetracked, yeah, I have no idea who else you would know, but if you know them, they’ll probably show up at some point.”   
  


Orihime smiled at the thought of seeing Hailey.  She was a sweet girl. “What about that Michelle girl?  She always comes here, doesn’t she?”

 

Tier sneered and made a tsk sound.  “Yeah. She needs to find a new home.  She pisses everyone off. But you can bet your ass she’s already here somewhere.”

 

Orihime gave Tier a small smile and raised her eyebrows awkwardly.  “Yeah, she seems to have it out for me, too.” 

 

Tier nodded.  She knew. “Well, don’t hide out in here with us all night.  Go mingle. We’ll be downstairs in a bit.”

 

Orihime looked at Ulquiorra.  “Wanna go downstairs then?”

 

Great, people he didn’t like were here. That was just wonderful. Ulquiorra hid his displeasure and nodded. “That’s fine. It was nice meeting you two,” he said to the blonde and the sleepy looking guy.

 

Orihime could read his face better than he thought she could.  “Hey, seriously, whenever you want to split we can go. I want to talk to Hailey a bit, but I don’t really know who else to talk to, so really.  Just say the word,” she said as they found the stairs to the basement.

 

“It’s fine, Orihime. I thought we came here so you could tell your story?” Ulquiorra was trying not to get agitated with how she was worrying about him. She couldn’t do this when he was in California. He gave her a smile. “Seriously, I’m going to have to get used to it when I’m in California.”

 

She took a deep breath and nodded.  “I guess this is training wheels then, huh?  Okay, let’s go. I know you hate Ivan, but he likes you, so at least you have someone you can berate and bullshit with if you want.”

 

He wanted to laugh. “All Ivan likes about me is you,” Ulquiorra said. “You should have asked if Nel was here, or if she was going to be here.”

 

“You told me she was coming, so I didn’t have to ask.  And Ivan has learned to tolerate me. That’s about as far as his affection for me goes.”

 

“Nel can say one thing and do the complete opposite. I just wanted to know if I should hide behind you or not for the night,” he said.

 

“Well, you know how much I enjoy it when you’re behind me,” she said before she realized it, then covered her mouth and cringed as she laughed at herself.

 

Ulquiorra had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from saying something really inappropriate. She had set him up for it, but he decided not to capitalize on it. He couldn’t stop the small grin that appeared on his face. “You’re a naughty woman,” he said quietly.

 

“Only for you,” she said before starting down the steps.  She was really glad they had come together tonight. This was fun.  This was flirty. This was necessary, because based on what happened the day before, she wasn’t sure she could come to terms with everything if she didn’t have this reminder of why they got together in the first place, not as Vega and Obscuras, but as Orihime and Ulquiorra.

 

He followed closely behind the small woman and looked around the basement. He saw several people that he’d nodded to around campus. Some of the people lived in Robinson Tower. This wasn’t so bad. Ulquiorra was here with Orihime and they both were in good spirits. They could get through this.

 

“Ollie!  Hime! You came!  Come over and meet Grimm,” Ichigo’s voice called over the small grouping of people in the basement.  Most of the people were still upstairs watching girls dance in the dining room.

 

“Hey Ivan,” Orihime said with a small laugh. “Hailey!” she squealed on seeing his girlfriend.

 

Ulquiorra scowled at the orange-haired guy, but recognized the person he had addressed as Grimm. It was the blue haired guy that Nel had been fucking around with. That took him back to weeks ago, when he’d met Orihime. 

 

“You dumbass, Kurosaki. I know who that guy is, and his name isn’t Ollie or whatever you call him,” Grimmjow snapped.

 

Ichigo rolled his eyes.  “Dude, I know. Ulquiorra, this is Grimmjow Jackass-jizz.  I don’t remember your last name, Ulq, sorry?”

 

“We’ve met before,” Ulquiorra stated nodding at Grimmjow.

 

“Yeah, through Nel.”

 

The dark-haired male nodded again to affirm the statement. “Is she here?”

 

“Nah, not yet. You’d know if she was here. Michelle hangs around trying to get Nel’s rejects,” Grimmjow replied. “So you’re Obscuras IV?”

 

“Yes and no, I am not singing anything.”

 

“No one asked you to.”


	24. It's a Choice

Orihime had stepped aside and was speaking with Hailey, who informed her that she was still dating Ichigo, but it had always been a bit unusual with him. And now she sometimes felt like a third wheel, watching Grimmjow and the carrot top awkwardly flirt with one another.

 

“So did you know?  About Ichigo being… you know?”  Orihime asked.

 

“Not always.  It explained a lot, though,” the blonde answered.  She smiled as she said it. “Made me feel better though to be honest.  I like him better this way. He could be bitter and nasty before he accepted it.”

 

Orihime nodded.  “So, Hailey, I wanted to ask you,  you’re a sophomore right?”

 

The other woman nodded.

 

“What’s your major? I see you around with Ichigo and you’re in the women’s choir, but people tell me you’re not a music major.”  

 

“I used to be a music major. Now I’m undeclared,” she answered.  There was regret in her eyes.

 

“What happened?  Why did you quit?”  Orihime’s eyes widened with an equal mix of sympathy and curiosity.

 

Hailey sighed and looked down.  “Um, there was this thing with a teacher and I just felt like I couldn’t do it anymore.”  She looked up at Orihime with a pained expression.

 

“What instrument did you play?  Were you a pianist like Ichigo?”

 

“No, I was a vocalist.”

 

***

 

Meanwhile, Ulquiorra was trying to ignore the two men who were bickering over something. He couldn’t help catching flashes of their argument.

 

“... I didn’t hear you complaining Thursday night,” Grimmjow said as he scrolled through a laptop that was sitting by his turntables and mixer. “You made it to the stage in time.”

 

“Barely,” Ichigo muttered.

 

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes. “Are you two a thing? How many girlfriends and boyfriends do you have between the two of you?”

 

Grimmjow scowled. “Uh, sometimes Nel, this asshole. He has Charley?”

 

“You mean Hailey?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

“Yeah, yeah, Hailey.” Grimmjow shrugged. “So you’re going out to L.A. to sign a recording contract?”

 

“I’m contemplating it, yes.”

 

The expression on Grimmjow’s face could only be taken as that he thought this was somewhat impressive. “Not bad,” he said.

 

“You’re not a music major are you?”

 

“Me? Nah, Digital Art. Not very good at it,” Grimmjow replied. “What about you? Nel said that you’re a science-y type guy. You look like a closet nerd.”

 

Ulquiorra narrowed his eyes. “I am not a closet nerd. I am a proud nerd.”

 

Ichigo laughed.  “That’s not what Orihime says.  According to her you’re some kind of Rico Suave.”

 

“I’m what?” Ulquiorra turned his displeased stare on Kurosaki.

 

“Don’t know that reference?  Um… like, um, a lady-killer? Lady-boner?  What is the thing they call it? I don’t fuckin’ know.”

 

His features smoothed out and Ulquiorra sighed. “I am not. I’m just me.”

 

Grimmjow laughed. “Nel says he’s a nerd. The only time he’s smooth as silk is online.”

 

That made Ulquiorra scoff. “Whatever. You two morons can argue amongst yourselves.”

 

***

 

Orihime glanced over at the three males after hearing Ulquiorra’s displeased noises, then returned her attention to the woman in front of her.  “So, who was your voice professor?”

 

“Dr. Aizen.  He made it really hard for me.  I know he’s your teacher and I heard you and he, um, get along--”

 

“No!” Orihime shouted in protest, then covered her mouth and took a breath.  “No,” she repeated at speaking volume. “I hate him. He’s a bad teacher. He’s a bad person.  I am not going back to voice studio ever again.”

 

Hailey’s eyes started to get wet.  “You too? Oh, Orihime…” she said and then pulled the much shorter woman into a hug.  Clearly Ichigo’s girlfriend had already had a couple drinks. Still, her display of solidarity, no matter how sloppy, made Orihime feel validated.

 

“Yeah,” Orihime said as she managed to wiggle her way out of Hailey’s grasp.  “The ass-grab at my recital was the last straw. The fact that he touched me with people everywhere was proof to me that he wouldn’t stop for anything.  It’s not just a matter of my dignity at this point, it’s a safety concern.”

 

“You mean that’s all he…” Hailey trailed off.  She didn’t want to reveal too much.

 

“What are you saying, Hailey?” Orihime whispered.

 

“I really don’t want to talk about it.”  Hailey bit her lower lip and looked away, wiping a tear out of the eye that was not visible to Orihime.

 

Orihime put her hand on the taller woman’s shoulder.  “I won’t tell anyone, Hailey, but I need to know what he did to you.  We need to warn people, at least.”

 

“No!’ Hailey shouted.  “Promise me! You can’t tell anyone.”

 

Orihime’s eyes got huge, shocked at the unexpected reaction.  “Hailey… What happened?”

 

“It doesn’t matter, nobody believed me,” she answered bitterly. 

 

“I believe you,” Orihime said, this time offering her a hug.

 

“I don’t want him to hurt anybody else… I just can’t.  I’m sorry. It took a long time… I’m still not over it.  There was this bitch, Loly, who graduated last year who thought she was his girlfriend or something.  She would start rumors about all the girls Aizen was nice to. She was the one blowing him in the studio and bending over piano benches, but she was the one spreading lies about the rest of us. She had this other friend in Tier’s studio who would back her up. She’s still in the department.  I wonder if she is the one starting this shit. Her name is Menoly. Tier hates her. Maybe you should talk to her about that girl later.”

 

“Loly.  Menoly. Got it.  Anybody else you know been harrassed by him?”

 

Hailey stood back and sniffed, wiping her eyes again.  “No, but we could go upstairs and ask. Do you want to?”

 

“Um, sure, let me just talk to Ulquiorra for a second.”

 

Hailey nodded and crossed her arms to wait.

 

Orihime returned to Ulquiorra.  “So, this is happening faster than I thought it would, can we talk a second?” she asked near his ear.

 

Ulquiorra was glad to take a break from the two assholes. He turned around and looked at the redhead. “What’s going on?”

 

Orihime told him everything she had learned from Ichigo’s girlfriend, speaking as quickly as possible so she wouldn’t lose any of the details.  When she got to the end of the story, she asked, “So, she offered to go upstairs with me to talk to some of the girls up there. Is that okay with you?”

 

Was that okay with him? Ulquiorra furrowed his brow. “Orihime, you’re welcome to do whatever you’d like here. You don’t need to ask me if you can do something. I told you to relax and have fun. If you need to go upstairs and talk to some people that’s fine.”

 

“That’s not how I meant it; I don’t want you to feel like I’m ditching you is all.”

 

He had to bite his tongue. “Even if you did ditch me here, I’d probably deserve it. It’s fine. If I need you I’ll find you. Okay?”

 

She smiled and nodded, brushing her hand from his shoulder down to his elbow before she backed away.  “I’ll come find you in a little while,” she said, before taking Hailey by the elbow and making their way up the stairs.

 

***

 

There was some whooping and yelling going on upstairs which made Ulquiorra’s eyes snap up. He could hear a familiar voice drifting through all the conversation. Oh no. It was getting closer too. 

 

“Nel’s here,” Grimmjow said. “She’ll be down here in a minute.”

 

Duh, he wanted to snap. Ulquiorra kept his eyes on the stairs and waited for Nel to appear. He saw the open toe of her high heels, followed by a lot of leg. He could hear Grimmjow whistle as Nel stepped into the basement.

 

Orihime had to have seen her.

 

He knew that outfit she was wearing quite well. The barely there black mini dress was covered by a loose denim shirt. Nel’s hair fell in waves around her face and body. She practically looked dressed to kill.

 

“Damn, she looks good. I don’t know how you passed on her, Cifer.”

 

It was easy to pass on crazy. Sure, she was gorgeous, but deep down, Ulquiorra knew what kind of skeletons Nel kept in her closet. “I’m gonna go--”

 

“No, you’re not.”

 

It didn’t take Nel very long to drift over to the three guys. “Grimm. Ichi. Ulq. How are you boys doing tonight?”

 

While the other two men answered her, Ulquiorra stayed silent with his arms folded over his chest. It wasn’t until Nel planted herself in front of him that he said anything. “Nel.”

 

“I’m surprised to see you out and about. Did your woman come along and let you off the leash?” She asked in a teasing voice and booped his nose.

 

“One, Orihime and I have mutual respect for each--” Ulquiorra was cut off by Nel turning around and rolling her hips against him. 

 

“Uh huh, you were saying?”

 

He glared at her as he smelled the alcohol on her breath. She had been drinking. “Nel,” he almost growled. “You’re not supposed to be drinking. It’s against the law. You’re not of age.”

 

“Oh hush, it was only a couple of sips,” she giggled before moving over to Grimmjow and throwing her arms over his shoulders. 

 

Ulquiorra watched as the two briefly kissed several times. “You two should get a room,” he muttered.

 

Ichigo neared Ulquiorra with his arms crossed over his chest.  “Seriously. I know she’s your friend or whatever but I intensely dislike her.  She’s a bitch.”

 

Turning his head, Ulquiorra looked at Kurosaki. “She’s kind of a friend. I have to agree with your assessment. She is a bitch. So you and Grimmjow? Orihime’s going to be so disappointed. She thought you had a mancrush on me.”

 

Ichigo chuckled.  “I mean, I wouldn’t kick you out of bed, but… I don’t know why I’m telling you this, but I don’t have a lot of people I know who  _ know _ .  But anyway, yeah, we’re not really a thing but I’m working on it.  I still have Hailey but I think she knows.”

 

“It’s cool. I hardly ever talk to anyone but your secret or business or whatever is safe with me,” Ulquiorra replied. He turned his attention back to Grimmjow and Nel. She was staring at him. “What?”

 

“Have you gotten anything to drink yet?” she asked.

 

“No. There’s no way--”

 

Again she interrupted him as she grabbed his arm and pulled him towards a table with cups and a pitcher of dark liquid in it. “Don’t worry, Starrk makes this amazing tea. You like tea. You’ll love this stuff.” 

 

He stared Nel down as she poured a cup and handed it to him then she poured herself some. “C’mon Ulquiorra. Live a little,” Nel said in a whiny voice.

 

Live a little? One eyebrow raised as he continued to look at his former best friend.

 

***

 

Orihime had been upstairs for about ten minutes when that Michelle girl cornered her in the kitchen, acting like they were buddies and asking her a million questions about Ulquiorra and Aizen and Ichigo.  After about five minutes, she managed to get away and find Hailey again, who had already gathered a group of about four more girls who were talking in hushed voices. Their collective expressions were a grab bag of bitterness, anger, regret, and sadness.  “Let’s take this over to Tier’s study; we can talk in there where it’s quiet,” Hailey suggested, leading the way. Orihime nodded, glad for this opportunity to clear her name. She texted Ulquiorra.

 

  * I’m going back in the room we met Tier in if you need to find me. <3



 

She was surprised to not see Nel anywhere, especially with that Michelle girl around.  On her way to Tier’s study she heard Michelle yelling, “Who wants to play truth or dare?  C’mon, everybody who wants to play come to the living room!”

 

Orihime rolled her eyes.  That Michelle girl was really pathetic.

 

***

 

He didn’t mean for this to happen. He was just letting loose a bit.

 

Ulquiorra’s head was feeling fuzzy as he sat on the couch in the back room of the basement. He could hear Grimmjow’s music being played on the other side of the wall. Nel had let him drink almost two cups of that “tea” stuff. The feeling of euphoria that erupted every time he moved his skull was pleasant. He could see how people got addicted to drinking. 

 

He felt hands cover his eyes and a warm breath against his ear. “You’re playing dirty,” he said. Ulquiorra knew who was in the room with him. He didn’t really care. Nel said she would help him ride this out. She had gone upstairs to get him some sparkling water because that’s all that they had at the moment. When she came back down, Ulquiorra downed the cup of water. It was slightly fruity.

 

“I am not,” Nel replied. “Trust me, if I was playing dirty, I would have slipped something into your drink, Stupid.”

 

“Did you?”

 

“No, do I look dumb?” Nel’s lips were against his ear. “What does Vega have that I don’t?”

 

Ulquiorra scoffed and tried to pry her hands off his face. “We’re not talking about this,” he stated.

 

“One chance is all I asked for.”

 

“Nel, I gave you--Look, you’re killing my buzz right now. Why don’t you get me more of that tea stuff or more water.” On second thought he shouldn’t be drinking at all. “I need more water.”

 

“It doesn’t matter which one I give you. They both have alcohol in them.”

 

Oh. “Can you at least take your hands off my face?”

 

One hand came up and Ulquiorra could see all that Nel had on was that thing she called a dress. She had lost the denim shirt. “I like your hair like this,” she said, running her now free hand through his hair, fingernails scratching at his scalp. Those same fingers ghosted over his ears, making him shiver.

 

“Don’t. You know what that does.”

 

“I do know. Does she do this?”

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “I don’t do the things that remind me of you.”

 

Nel chuckled. Somehow she ended up sitting in his lap, legs on either side of his thighs. “What reminds you of me?”

 

“Everything? How you used to be so bossy. The scratching thing. How you used to play with my piercings--”

 

“I noticed you don’t have those in anymore.”

 

“I had to grow up. Anyway, how rough I was with you. The way you’d give me head. All that,” he said, letting one eye stare at her. With the fuzziness in his head he felt like he should have been remembering something. It was probably nothing. He was just relaxing.

 

The smile on Nel’s face grew. “I can help refresh your memory,” she said.

 

“How? What makes you so sure I want a refresher course?”

 

Neither of them noticed when the curtain that separated the backroom from the rest of the basement had moved.

 

Michelle had covered her screen with one hand while she held it up to record what was going on with the other.  Even she couldn’t believe it. Nel was a master. A pro. She had so much to learn from her teal-haired roommate, she thought as she smiled, moving silently through the dimly-lit room to get the best angle.  Ulquiorra was too blitzed to notice her. He was also way too preoccupied.

 

Ichigo had kept one eye on Ulquiorra as he had slammed his drinks and started slurring his words.  He had let it go as friendly flirtation when Nel kept plying him with alcohol and touching his arms.  But when she pulled him into the back room, that was one step too far. Orihime was his friend. He couldn’t let this happen, so he went upstairs to find her.

 

Orihime was in Tier’s room with a room full of women in varying states of intoxication, from stone cold sober like Orihime, to not even buzzed like Tier, to completely tanked.  All of them were in the throes of catharsis as they shared their stories of sexual harassment and molestation at the hands of Aizen and fellow students. Girls were thanking Orihime for sharing her story and Tier for bringing them all together to be supportive instead of tearing one another down.

 

When Ichigo popped his head in, there were several scowls thrown in his direction for interrupting.  He felt like he had disturbed some kind of sad coven. “Um, sorry, uh, ladies. Orihime, can I borrow you for a minute?  It’s important.”

 

Orihime was alarmed.  She had never seen Ichigo act this serious.  “Yeah, of course,” she said, standing up and leaving the room with him.

 

“I really hope I’m wrong,” he said, putting a hand behind her elbow and guiding her to the basement stairs, “but I think Nel is making a move on your drunk boyfriend.”

 

Orihime sighed heavily and rolled her eyes.  She was not at all surprised that Nel had come and was trying to get into Ulquiorra’s pants.  It was just her pattern. That Ulquiorra was drunk was surprising. “I better go save him,” she said, trotting down the steps.

 

***

 

This was just like riding a bike, Ulquiorra thought as he kissed Nel, threading his fingers through her hair, yanking slightly on the teal strands. He still had no desire for her; at least he couldn’t feel anything. Maybe it was a slow burn thing. Maybe he needed more alcohol in his system for it to manifest. He just knew everything felt nice. It felt warm. His head was buzzy. 

 

He had never drank before in his life, so he probably shouldn’t have accepted Nel’s challenge for him to “live a little’. He was living fine, but he didn’t want to seem like an outcast. It was all in a manner of speaking though. Ulquiorra was a freak. He had always been a loner.

 

His other hand came up and grabbed Nel’s tit roughly, which made her gasp into his mouth. So she still liked it rough. He could do this. It was just going through the motions. If Nel wanted a soulless puppet to kiss her, fine. She was really getting into it though, grinding her ass against his lap.

Then her mouth moved to his neck, biting the skin there. She chuckled softly and seductively into his ear, letting a small purr out. “Do you remember the last time? You know the Friday before Vega came into your life?”

 

“Mmhmm,” he said. 

 

“Didn’t that feel good?”

 

“No. It feels better with her,” he replied. Ulquiorra’s hands went to Nel’s hips, pulling up that little black dress she had on. Everything felt better between him and Vega. The kisses. The touches. The orgasms.

 

He kept the fabric balled tightly in his hands as he hissed. Nel had hit that particularly sensitive spot on his neck. He could feel her hands moving against the front of his jeans. 

 

The buzzing feeling in his head was slowly fading into something else as seconds passed by.

 

*** 

 

Ichigo had seen Orihime walk up to the curtain and called out, “Orihime, maybe you don’t want to go back there.  I can look first, if you want.”

 

“No, I’m sure it’s fine,” she responded, pulling the curtain back and flipping on a switch.

 

She did not expect to see a bare ass in front of her.  Nor did she expect to see Michelle standing against the wall, frozen, holding up her phone, and trying to pretend she didn’t exist.

 

“What the fuck?”  Orihime barked, confusion overwhelming all other emotions at the moment.

 

Nel’s head snapped up and she scrambled to get off of Ulquiorra’s lap, pulling down the back of her dress. It wasn’t that hard to do. The guy was almost passed out. She looked down at him. Okay, he was passed out. Then she noticed the brunette standing there. “What the fuck, Michelle!?”

 

“You told me to,” Michelle said, making an ugly face and holding a hand out as if to throw responsibility back into Nel’s lap.  If there was one thing that Michelle girl was good at, it was avoiding culpability.

 

Orihime did not have any desire to deal with these two slags at the moment.  “Um, Ulquiorra? I’m going to go. Do you want a ride?” she asked, approaching him and shaking his shoulder, and glancing down to see his erection.  A hard, disapproving breath came out of her nose. She would deal with her feelings about this later. Right now she just needed to get out.

 

As soon as he heard his name the drunken stupor that had overtaken him lessened greatly. It was almost gone and he opened his eyes to see Orihime looking at him. He lifted his head, turning it slightly to glance at Nel and then another woman in the room. His head still felt funny. Shit. His eyes opened and shut again as he struggled to sit up.

 

“He’s pretty drunk,” Nel said.

 

“I can see that, Nel,” Orihime spat the other woman’s name like a curse.  “What did you do to him?!”

 

“He’s never drank before. He was slamming Long Island Iced Teas like they were nothing. He had some of that doctored up water from upstairs. Michelle might have given me something to put in it.”

 

Orihime turned to face Nel.  She was livid. “Are you fucking stupid?  Is there a brain in that trashy green head of yours?  For fuck's sake! Do I need to take him to a hospital?  What kind of scumball “friend” are you, anyway? Michelle!”

 

The brunette looked at Orihime with wide eyes. She had never heard anything but soft sweetness come out of the soprano’s mouth.  She was slightly cowed by this change in the small redhead. “What?” she asked quietly.

 

“Get your ass over here, “what”.  Jesus. What the fuck did you give him?  Tell me!”

 

“Um, just, like, a quarter of a Xanax… that’s all.”  

 

Orihime scoffed and looked around her at Nel.  “And he had how many Long Islands?”

 

“I don’t know. I think he may have stopped at two… It could have been four? He had only one cup of that water. He seemed tense. I was only trying to… I was trying to help.”

 

“Shut the fuck up, you slag.  I know exactly what you were trying to do.  You are as transparent as glass. The only person who buys your bullshit is him.  You’re a disgrace. Ichigo! Grimmjow!”

 

Nobody responded.

 

Orihime looked at Ulquiorra.  She was worried. “If either of you know what is good for you, you will go out there right now and bring those two asshats back here.  I need help getting him into the car. And if you don’t you are both looking at assault charges.”

 

Nel huffed and then slowly stood. She smirked as she left, tossing her hair over her shoulder. Not fucking likely. They had video, hopefully… Unless her dense roommate had fucked that up too. “Grimm!”

 

“What bitch? I’m working?”

 

“Vega needs your help. It turns out that Ulquiorra passed out. She says take Ichigo back there,” Nel said. “Don’t worry, I can watch this while you do whatever.”

 

“I told you not to fuck with that stuff,” Grimmjow replied and then walked over to Ichigo. “C’mon Berry boy.”

 

Ichigo was already on his way in there.  After he got into the room he stood and observed Ulquiorra for a minute.  “Yikes. He looks fucked up.”

 

Orihime’s eyes slid over to his with a deadly glare.  “No shit, Sherlock. Can you guys help me get him to the car?  As soon as I get outside I have to call Poison Control.”

 

Grimmjow nodded and then went over to one side of the drunk guy. He motioned for Ichigo to take the other. He was expecting Ulquiorra to be light but the guy was heavy as a dead body. “Jesus, he’s solid for such a little guy,” he joked but as soon as he saw Orihime’s face, he dropped the smile. “What about when you get to wherever you’re going? Do you got help then?”

 

“No,” Orihime replied, the stress of the situation starting to catch up with her causing her voice to crack.  “Do you think I should take him straight to the emergency room?”

 

Grimmjow looked at Nel, who had come back into the room. “How much did you give him?”

 

“Three cups of alcohol, but they were almost full. There was only a fourth of a pill in the water,” she replied. 

 

“But he said he never drank before,” Orihime supplied, completely ignoring Nel’s presence otherwise.

 

“He’s also never taken any drugs.”

 

“Well fuck. I don’t think anything will be wrong with him except a wicked headache but, if you take him to the hospital, they’re gonna get a hold of emergency contacts, the school, people will be questioned.”

 

“That is the least of my concerns,” Orihime muttered.  “Anyway, Ichigo, can you help me get him out of here? I’m parked right next door.  You losers can stay here and live your little bullshit selfish lives all you want. I’m out.”  She looked at Ichigo with a pleading expression as she tried to duck under Ulquiorra’s arm that Grimmjow had held up.

 

Grimmjow scoffed and rolled his eyes. He and Ichigo managed to get the dead-to-the-world musician out of the backroom and up the stairs. He knew there would be questions asked as to why someone was being carried out of the party. He wasn’t going to answer anything though.

 

Tier saw what was going on when the group passed the den doorway.  She got up and caught Starrk’s eye, following Orihime out the door.  “What happened, Orihime?”

 

The younger woman turned and showed Tier a face full of tears.  “It was Nel and that Michelle girl. He has never had a drink before and they gave him a bunch of Long Islands and some Xanax.”

 

Tier grabbed Orihime by the shoulder.  “They’re out. Don’t worry, they won’t be back.  Starrk? My patience has reached its limits with the dumb bitch twins.  Please make sure they understand.”

 

Starrk nodded and went back inside. 

 

“Thanks, Tier.  I’ll let you know how it goes but I have to make a call.”

 

Ichigo and Grimmjow had gotten Ulquiorra into the car and buckled in, and Orihime reached for his pocket, taking out his phone.  She wasn’t looking forward to what she had to do, nor did she know if she could even do it, but she had to try.

 

She didn’t know Ulquiorra’s passcode.  She knew his birthday, though. Maybe he did the same as she did and used his date of birth.  She tried it. 1-2-0-1. Nope. Maybe month and year? 1-2-0-0. Nope. She thought. Maybe…. she looked at the dial buttons.  It was a little narcissistic but would he use her name? She found the numbers that corresponded with the letters v-e-g-a; 8-3-4-2.  His phone unlocked.

 

She went to his contact list and searched for J’s.  No Jon Cifer, she shook her head at herself. He didn’t call his own father Jon.  She went to the D’s. There it was. Daddio. She would have laughed if the circumstances were different.  She tapped the call button.

 

“Cifer Confections. This is Jon speaking, what can we bake for you today?” Jon said absently. He was currently in the city where Ulquiorra attended college for a  baking and confectionary expo. Things were wrapping up and he was cleaning the booth that Cifer Confections was housed in for the night. 

 

“Jon?  This is Orihime, um, Vega,” she said quickly.  The fear in her voice was obvious.

 

Why was his son’s girlfriend calling him? “What’s up Orihime? Everything okay?”

 

“No, um, Ulquiorra… Nel got him really drunk and gave him some Xanax.  He’s passed out right now. I don’t know what to do, I was going to call Poison Control or take him to the hospital but I’m scared and I don’t know what to do and I need you to tell me what to do,” she squeaked, her voice breaking.

 

Nel? Ulquiorra? Drunk? The man ran a hand over his face. This was distressing news. He put his hand over the end of the phone and started talking to Shawn. “Situation, Ulq was given alcohol and a xanax.”

 

“How much?” Shawn questioned as he swept the floor.

 

“How much did he drink?” Jon asked Orihime.

 

“Nel couldn’t tell me.  She said between two and four solo cups full of Long Island Iced Tea and about another cup’s worth of White Claw or some kind of spiked seltzer.  Her roommate said that he only got a quarter of a Xanax.”

 

The man relayed this information to Shawn. Jon stood there for a second while he thought.

 

“Uh, I’d keep an eye on him. He’s gonna have one fucking wicked hangover in the morning. Did he eat before he drank?”

 

Jon let out a heavy sigh. “Orihime, do you know if he ate before he drank?”

 

“I don’t know.  I had said something about eating this morning but he didn’t join me.  He was upset with me today, so we spent a lot of time apart, but when I talked with him he was acting like he wasn’t hungry.”

 

Jon shook his head at Shawn. “Where are you Orihime?” he asked. Already Jon was grabbing his coat and motioning for Shawn to keep cleaning.

 

“I can text you the address, but I had a couple guys help me get him into my car so I can go wherever.  I didn’t drink anything tonight.”

 

“Where are you taking him?” Jon was already running through the banquet hall, bumping into people. He needed to get to his car and then to wherever Ulquiorra was going. “Are you taking him to the hospital? Are you taking him to his room? Your place? Where did this happen? Talk to me. Was anyone besides Nel involved?”

 

“I’ll go wherever you tell me to go, Jon. I’m so scared.”  She paused to get her keys in the ignition, her shaking hands fumbling a bit.  “I’m going to put you on speaker.” She did and put the phone into a cup holder and started driving out of the residential area she had parked in. “We were at a house party.  Nel and her roommate were involved as far as I can tell. I left him with a friend of ours and went to upstairs to talk to some girls and came back down less than an hour later to find Nel trying to rape him and her roommate taking pictures.   Ulquiorra only came to this party with me because I asked him to. This is my fault.”

 

The man’s mouth formed a thin line as he unlocked the car and got in. “NO! This is Nel’s fault. This is her roommate’s fault. This is Ulquiorra’s responsibility. He should have called Nel’s probation officer!” Jon stated. He was angry so he wasn’t putting in place the filter he used most of the time.

 

“Probation officer?”

 

“It’s nothing. I can tell you the tragedy of Nel later, when things aren’t so stressful. Okay?”

 

“Where am I taking him?”

 

“Hospital. Take him to the university hospital. He’s my only kid. I trust Shawn to an extent but Ulq--I’m not taking chances,” Jon said. “Text me your number and I will call you when I get there.”

 

“Okay. I’m already on my way.”

 

***

 

When Orihime arrived at the emergency room, she started checking Ulquiorra in and texted Jon her number at the same time.  She told the hospital staff that she had found Ulquiorra passed out at a McDonald’s, and that the people he was with  told her what he had ingested and left.  No, she didn’t know who they were. Yes, he was her boyfriend, but they had gotten into an argument and she hadn’t seen him for most of the day.

 

Jon arrived about a half hour later. He was huffing as he ran into the emergency room doors. He texted Orihime, telling her he was there. He felt frantic. He had called Maria on the drive over. He had phoned Steve. He called his mother. This was unsettling behavior for the kid. Eventually he called Nel’s mother and told her what was going on. He could hear the disappointment in Brenda’s voice. 

 

Whatever problems Nel had was no concern of his. He walked up to the nurses’ desk and the person behind it looked bored. “Jon Cifer, you have my son? Ulquiorra Cifer?” 

 

Orihime heard Jon’s voice after getting the text and abandoned her response, jogging over to the man.  “Jon? Jon! Nobody will tell me anything.”

 

He figured this would happen. “Well, you can come back with me,” he told the short woman. He turned back to the desk jockey and waited a minute before barking out a demand. “Where is my son?! I want to see him now!”

 

“Just one moment.”

 

It took more than a moment. Five minutes later the pair were being escorted into a cubical thing with a curtains pulled on three sides. Ulquiorra lay on a bed with his eyes half opened. Jon about collapsed in relief. “What the hell is wrong with you? Ulquiorra, you know--”

 

“I wasn’t thinking,” he mumbled.

 

“That much is obvious! Nel did this?”

 

Ulquiorra’s head moved marginally. He still felt woozy and disoriented. He wanted to go back to sleep. “Her and that Michelle girl,” he stated.

 

“Why did you go along with it? Has common sense left you? Has your brain gone AWOL?” Jon was becoming irritated at his child and the apathetic way he just laid there staring at nothing. “Orihime tells me that you were almost taken advantage of; is this true?”

 

This time Ulquiorra’s eyes moved until he spotted the redhead standing behind his father. He shrugged. “It could be taken that way,” he responded.

 

“Could be?” Orihime asked quietly, brows furrowed.  “What is that supposed to mean?”

 

“She gave you alcohol and another substance that you have to have a prescription for! Of course I’m going to take it that way,” Jon snapped. “There’s no other way it could be taken. What the hell is going through your head?”

 

It was then that Orihime’s phone started buzzing.  And buzzing. And buzzing. Orihime ignored it. “Ulquiorra, I know what I saw.  She had her hands all over you. Every chance she gets she tries to get her claws into your mind.  Michelle said that Nel told her to take pictures.”

 

Pictures.  That’s what it probably was.  Those basic bitches were probably trying to break Orihime down with them. She would show them.  They couldn’t get away with this. “It looks like the evidence is going to speak for itself,” she said, opening the message.

 

She could hear everything.  She could see everything. She said nothing.

 

Jon stood there and looked between the young lady and his son. Something was amiss between them. Something was terribly wrong here. “I’m going to let you two have a minute to talk. I’m going to speak to the doctor.”

 

“No. I’ll go.”  her voice was so quiet.  It was so dead. There was nothing for her to do or say.  Ulquiorra had chosen Nel. “Thanks for your help, Jon,” she said, her face starting to crumple.  She couldn’t stay there. She pulled the curtain back and left.


	25. Whatcha Say

Normally, Jon would have stayed with Ulquiorra. He didn’t this time. Every time his son had been in a hospital, Nel had been the cause. He felt that he had to protect Ulquiorra from his friend. This time, Jon went out of the so-called room and after Orihime. “Orihime, stop. What is going on?”

 

Orihime turned around.  She was a mess and incapable of speech, presently.  Her hand shook as she reached for the arm of a chair and sank into it, sobbing for a time. Finally, she peppered her gasps and hiccups with speech.   “He has been talking to her. He kept it quiet. He invited her to my recital. He got mad when I was unhappy about it. He saw my professor molest me.  He left me there. He said he doesn’t trust me. He-- He--” she broke down again. She had to scream a bit through clenched teeth to make herself calm down, looking up at the ceiling and curling her fingernails tightly into her fists.  “He chose her. That’s all.”

 

Jon knew his son. He knew that he got incredibly jealous and territorial about things. He had never acted on it before, though. He never sought revenge for anything. Ulquiorra’s father sat in the chair beside Orihime, frowning. “I should have put a stop to their friendship a long time ago, but I didn’t until it was too late. By then they both were screwed up. I’m not excusing his behavior. It’s obvious no one has told you the Ballad of Ulquiorra and Nelliel.”

 

She shook her head.  She wasn’t sure she wanted to know, but if Jon wanted to tell her, she’d listen.

 

“I understand you’re upset with him. I’m obviously making an understatement, but,” Jon said before he cleared his throat. “A little over two years ago, I got together with Steve again. It made Ulquiorra mad, because he doesn’t like Steve. Steve cheated on me, but I thought he had changed for the better. I’m an idiot. Anyway, Ulquiorra had started that video thing and things were okay, but then he fell into this funk. He stopped eating. At the same time, Nelliel was going through some stressful stuff. There was a pregnancy or something; I didn’t pay attention to Brenda at the time because Nel isn’t my kid. Not my circus, not my monkey.”

 

He tried to chuckle but it came out rough. “So, we have my kid who isn’t eating because he’s sad. And this went on for a while. We got Ulq therapy but it kept happening. Nel kept drinking. Normal high school bullshit of today. I didn’t have these problems when I went to school. She and Ulquiorra ended up in a car. Nel was driving.”

 

What, did Jon live under a rock?  Drinking and driving were not new problems. She flared her nostrils and took a deep breath.  It wouldn’t do to think poorly of Jon. He didn’t do this. Still, she was unmoved by this story.  “That’s unfortunate.”  

 

He gave her a small smile for the remark. “Yeah, it was. Nel almost killed herself. She almost killed Ulquiorra that night. They hit a tree head on, because Ulquiorra didn’t want her, and Nel was tired of it. She has problems, I’m sure you’re aware of that. So I laid down boundaries. I laid down laws. Ulquiorra followed them. Nelliel, not so much.”

 

Orihime raised an eyebrow.  She was skeptical. “What kind of laws?”  She had heard things from Ulquiorra, that based on what she knew now, would fly in the face of any kind of boundaries a normal parent might set.

 

“Ulquiorra had to work. He had to eat,” Jon said. “Brenda said that Nel was fine. It was "just love", she said. I made an error in judgement. I was in no position to move, and neither were Nel’s family, so to keep my son from getting hurt, I allowed them to stay friends and spend a bit of time together during the week. Flawed logic. Flawed everything. I should have packed him up and sent him out to his mother. I asked Ulquiorra to pick a different school, one where Nel hadn’t applied.”

 

Orihime shook her head.  It was always going to be Nel. He would always choose her.  If almost killing him in a car crash didn’t convince him to stay away from her, nothing would keep him from the crazy bitch.  “I never had a chance. I can’t win. He told me he loved me, you know? He said he did. A lot. He said he cut her out. It lasted what, four weeks?  Five?” She shook her head again. “I always told him when we only knew each other online that she wasn’t his friend; she didn’t have his interests at heart.  That if he didn’t want to end up with her, he would have to leave her alone. He always argued when I said that. After we met, he said I was right. I guess he does want to be with her.  I’m sorry Jon. I wish I had been enough to keep him from her.”

 

She was going to give up that easily? Jon shook his head. “You _have_ a chance. I took photos of you two while you were at the house. You both are so wrapped around each other. You feel so deeply for each other. And hey, five weeks is a lot longer than most of the times he’s tried to stay away from her.”

 

She frowned deeply.  “Jon, I know he’s your son, and I know you want what’s best for him, but what about what’s best for me?  I’m all I’ve got. I want to believe that I am worth more than five weeks to somebody. I want to believe that the person I’m with would believe in me, not some jealous rumors or a handsy professor.  I told him that this teacher was bad news and that I only had to deal with him until my recital. All it took was one instance of seeing that prick grab my ass and he left me, stranded, at that concert hall.  I called him and he wouldn’t even return my keys. Just earlier today he was talking about us not being together anymore. He was talking with Nel behind my back. You heard what he said to her on that video.  I was not even a thought in his mind. These are choices he is making. Yes, Nel is bad, bad news. But it is his choice. Why should I swallow my dignity to limp along a failing relationship? Yes, I love him.  Deeply. But I’m not going to stand around and let him hurt me over and over again. He may not even want me back at this point.”

 

“I fully believe that everyone has to do what is best for them, Orihime. You have people in your life. You’ve got me if you ever need a hand. You’re a hard worker and I appreciate people like that. Ulquiorra has his own problems to work through. He needs to talk to someone who is not in this situation; someone who is not biased. He's tried so many times to cut her out of his life. He gets tired of the pestering. But that being said,” Jon paused. “Ulquiorra was warned what would happen if he maintained contact with Nel. I am a man of my word.”

 

Pestering?  Really? The more she heard about this situation, the less sympathetic she was.  There were ways to stop pestering. They weren't hard to enact. It wasn’t hard to block a number or get a restraining order.  It wasn’t hard to be cold and leave people disinterested in further contact. She had seen it happen uncountable times in her life. These were just excuses for Ulquiorra to keep pursuing the same course he always took.  Maybe to someone who hadn’t been raised on a steady diet of bullshit, the excuses might sound valid. They sounded hollow in her ears, though. As long as there were excuses, he would always go back to Nel.

 

Still, she was interested in what Jon was saying.  “What are you going to do?”

 

“He has to provide for himself. That phone? I pay for it. That car he drives? It’s mine and I pay the insurance on it. I also make the payments on his schooling. It’s simple stuff, really. He wants to make poor decisions, he can do it on his own dime.”

 

“Well, I’m not saying you shouldn't follow through.  You should. But it’s just going to make his decision easier.  He’s flying out to see his mom at the end of the month. He’s going to sign with Espada Records.  He posted a YouTube video about it last night.” She paused and scoffed as something occurred to her.  “I should have seen this coming. He was talking about us going out there together until a few weeks ago.  Then it was all about him going. The only time we talked about me coming was if I brought it up, and he just kind of smiled and nodded. That’s probably when he started talking to her again. Oh, and get this!” she said with a bitter laugh, although her face was still a picture of sadness.  “I just got cut off, too, for leaving my shitty, molesting voice teacher. So I’m going to be a drop out with no funds or place to live at the end of semester! What a jolly little tale.” She sighed and looked up to see the shock on Jon’s face. “Don’t worry. I have a trust fund. I can go back to school when I turn twenty-two, but until then my aunt holds the purse-strings, and she has closed them up tight.”

 

Her phone started buzzing again.  “Who is it this time?” she asked aloud, looking at the phone.  She tapped the notification and saw screenshots of the Instagram messages between Ulquiorra and Nel.  Each one felt like a stab in the heart. “They’re from Nel,” she said, shaking her head as fresh tears dropped out of her eyes silently.  “This has been going on for awhile. He never loved me. He’s been flirting with her. How could he say these things about me?”

 

Jon looked at the screenshots. He didn’t know what to say to her. There was nothing he could say to her. “If you need a place, there’s always room with me and Steve, as long as you don’t stab him,” the man said and sighed. “He has his head up his ass right now, Orihime. Also, I think he’s leaving sooner than that. His mother told me he was leaving on Wednesday.”

 

Orihime stood.  She couldn’t stay there anymore.  “So he wasn’t even going to tell me. I guess it shouldn't surprise me at this point. Anyway, I better go. Oh, here’s his phone.  Tell him he shouldn’t use my name as his passcode.”  She didn’t like how her bitterness was lacing her tone with Jon.  He had been nothing but kind to her. She stopped and took a deep breath.  “Can I hug you?” she asked, her chin crumbling and her breath hitching.

 

“I’m not telling him anything,” Jon said, standing up. “Of course you can.” Jon wrapped Orihime into a warm hug and squeezed. “If you need anything, just give me a call okay? You are probably the best thing that ever happened to my son.”

 

Orihime nodded and held on for a few minutes, crying into Jon’s shirt.  When she thought she might be able to hold it together enough to walk out to her car, she let go.  “Thank you, Jon. I’ll see you again, I’m sure.”

 

Jon smiled. “Hey, Orihime. You might want to let him know,” he said. ”Ulq can be a bit oblivious and stupid at times. Maybe this will be a wakeup call to him.”

 

“What should I tell him?” she was at a loss.  He knew what he did. He would know how it would affect her.

 

“Up to you, kiddo. This is your battle to fight. I’ve had to go through something like this with his mother,” Jon replied.

 

She looked up at him with defeat in her eyes.  “And we know how that ended. There is nothing to fight about.  There is nothing to fight for. He wants her, not me. I concede.  I’ll let him know,” she said, then turned to leave the hospital.

 

Jon watched her leave and then turned back to where his son was laying. When he was done, he left the hospital with the keys to the car. He had called a friend and asked the man to meet him to pick up the car and he’d be back to get it soon. It felt like a heartless move, but Jon also cancelled Ulquiorra’s credit card. The boy had to learn.

 

***

 

Ulquiorra walked back to Robinson Tower the next morning. He had no phone. He had no car. He had no money that he could draw on. He knew he looked like hell, which was why he was glad that the lobby of the building was almost empty. He still got looks from those who there. He punched the button to the elevator. All he wanted to do was get to his floor.

 

“Nice,” a guy he didn’t know said to him, flashing a thumbs up.  “That was you with that green-haired chick, right?”

 

“Pardon me? What are you talking about?” Ulquiorra asked in a confused voice. As far as he knew, there were only four people total that knew what happened the previous night. 

 

“Dude, it’s all over the internet.”

 

“Move you hussies!”

 

Ulquiorra about groaned. That was Szayel’s voice, and when the guy’s pink hair came into view, he rolled his eyes. “Into the elevator now!” 

 

He pushed the button again, and this time it dinged and the doors opened. Szayel pushed him inside and then hit the button for the tenth floor. 

 

“My god,” the pink-haired male said. “Was that the green-haired woman from the beginning of the semester?”

 

“What? How do you know about this?” Ulquiorra asked.

 

Szayel looked at him like he was dumb. “You look like hell, and there’s practically a porn of you all over the gossip sites? Who got taken for a ride last night?”

 

Once they got to their room, his roommate sat him down in front of Ulquiorra’s laptop and quickly brought up Youtube.

 

“Hey! How did you--”

 

“Dude, I hacked into your laptop a long time ago. Don’t use your girlfriend’s internet handle as a password,” Szayel replied.

 

Ulquiorra scowled and sat there while the page loaded, and when it did, his eyes about bugged out of his skull. He was featured in the number one trending video, but that wasn’t his channel. It was a gossip blogger by the name _ItsRa n !_

 

“Fuck.”

 

“Oh, you have no clue.” The video was clicked on.

 

“Hey everyone! It's Rangiku from It's Ran! I've got your hottest celebrity gossip and I'm dishing it out.” The blonde on the screen smiled. "So, let's talk shop. For a couple of years, we all have been dying to know about this Obscuras IV guy. Or Four… Whatever… He doesn’t show his face, but he has the most wonderful-est voice… Ever."

 

Once again she smiled, but this time it was overlaid with some funky filter that showed hearts above her head. “About a six weeks ago, maybe less, we get a body picture from him, and let me tell you ladies and gents and other creatures of the internet, it was… Heavenly. Angels sung. Old women clutched their pearls. Wars stopped. This guy made world thirst a thing. Since then, we’ve been getting snippets into ObscurasIV’s life. Until… Until someone recorded a live performance of Vega IV, which is essentially ObscurasIV and Vega.Strife00. There were rumors that the two were dating.”

 

Rangiku looked at the camera and laughed. “ _Were_. Dating. Let that sink in boys and girls. Let us all celebrate, for I have exclusive footage of our little emo crooner getting up to shenanigans. I was sent video by a certain insider. We know who is featured in this video. Are you confused? I know I am.”

 

The woman giggled. "Okay, so ObscurasIV was with this person named Gamuza3 before he started his freshman year of college. Something happened. For two years, ObscurasIV has been obviously flirting with Vega Strife. This had to happen during the same timeline. I’ve been assured that the people in the video are Obscuras IV, Gamuza3 and Vega.Strife00.

 

“Oh,” The woman on the screen paused. “This video is for mature audiences. There’s talk about adulty things. There’s adulty stuff going on. There’s a naked ass. As always, I will be giving my comments on things as they unfold.”

 

The video played and Ulquiorra heard what he said to Nel. He saw what happened between them. He felt his stomach twist as his fingers plucked at Nel’s clothing. No. This wasn’t happening. It wasn’t happening. “FUCK!” he yelled at the screen. Ulquiorra felt Szayel take a step back.

 

The video kept going and this stupid vlogger would interject with comments. Ulquiorra could see the exact moment he had fallen asleep. And then the footage lit up. Someone flipped a lightswitch and then he was staring at Orihime who was asking the age old question of, “What the fuck?”

 

Rangiku came back on the screen. “Sadly the story stopped there,” she said. “My source says that other things happened and there are screenshots that suggest that this wasn't just a spur of the moment thing, but couldn’t produce them. So, what do you as my audience think? Leave your comments below. Remember to make sure you’re subbed to me so you can get the--”

 

Ulquiorra closed the laptop and pressed his forehead against the desk. “Szayel?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Can I use your phone?”

 

“The purpose?”

 

“I need to call my mom?”

 

***

 

Orihime drove around all night.  She got back to her dorm around six in the morning and laid down in her clothes.  She stared at the same spot on the floor until her mind finally shut down and she fell asleep. Slept until about two in the afternoon and then called Ichigo.

 

“Hello?”  He sounded sleepy.

 

“Hey, do you have any gigs coming up soon that you might be able to use me for?  I am kind of hard up for cash.”

 

“Umm,  let me think.  Well, maybe Grimm could--”

 

“No.  Only you.”

 

“Okay.  I don’t have anything right now, but I’ll let you know, okay?  How are you doing, by the way? Is he alright?”

 

“His dad met us at the hospital so I’m sure it’s fine.  I haven’t heard anything since I left last night.”

 

“So you saw the video?”

 

“Yeah, and the screenshots.”

 

“Oh.  I didn’t know they were released.”

 

“Yeah.  Someone sent them to me directly.  They are bad,” she said in an underwhelmed tone. 

 

“I’m sorry, Orihime.  It sucks.”

 

“Yeah, it does.  Call me if anything comes up, okay?”  She asked and cut the call.

 

She sat looking at that same spot on the floor again.  What was she going to do with herself now?

 

Find a damn job, that’s what.  She thought about it. She needed steadier, more consistent funds than what she got for shows.  Maybe Chad would give her some shifts. She sent him a text explaining her situation briefly and asking for shifts or opportunities to play.  She said she would do it at a discounted rate.

 

She was free of obligations for the day.  She had a song stuck in her head, though. Still wearing the clothes she had fallen asleep in, she walked down to the Fine Arts building.

 

***

 

Ulquiorra had a brand new phone in his hand by six that evening. His mother said he would need it. She also gave him access to some money. She also gave him the third degree about the whole vlogger thing.

 

“It’s nice that you decided to go with someone who was more aesthetically pleasing,” Maria said to him. “This Vega was cute, but so not up to your level. Tell Nel I said hi, I enjoyed her company when she was out here this past summer.”

 

He wanted to tell his mom that she had it all wrong, but she hung up. As soon as the phone was set up, Ulquiorra installed Instagram on it. He had so many comments. So much trolling and words… He couldn’t deal with it.

 

Could he text Orihime? Did he still have her information?

 

No. He couldn’t remember her number. Dammit.

 

He opened Instagram again and this time scrolled through the messages until he found her username.

 

ObscurasIV 

Omg. I’m sorry. 

I know I screwed up.

I don’t know what happened

Please, Vega. Orihime. 

Veggs. Woman… Please.

I don’t want to lose you.

I can’t lose another best friend. 

 

She would probably never reply. Especially after all of their business was now smeared on YouTube. Ulquiorra laid down on his bed, frowning at the message he sent. He’d screwed up. No, he didn’t screw up. He fucked up. This was on par with what Steve had done to his dad, only worse. 

 

Ulquiorra texted his father. He was expecting an instant reply but nothing came.

 

***

 

Orihime saw his message.  She shook her head and put her phone back into her pocket.  She didn’t know what to say to him. He was so full of shit.  Did he believe himself?

 

She got into a practice room.  She had an arrangement to her song in mind.  She would have to do some editing to layer on back-up vocals.  She worked on it. She read about how to do the editing. After a couple hours she took a break and replied to Ulquiorra.

 

Vega.Strife00 

I know what happened.  I saw the video. I was also there after the video cut.

I chewed out Nel.  She laughed at me.

I took you to the hospital.  I believed in you that whole time.

Then she sent me the video.

Then she sent me the screenshots.

I don’t know who you are trying to kid.

You got your best friend back.   You should be happy.

You didn’t lose me.  You chose her.

You always choose her.

 

She turned her phone off and worked some more.  This song was harder than Disarm. Not musically, but it was harder for her to keep her emotions in check. She got it recorded, though.  She edited it. It took all evening and most of the night. When it was done, she was pleased. It looked good. It sounded good; haunting perhaps.  She published it and went to bed exhausted.

 

***

 

It was easy for him to fall back into old habits. Ulquiorra didn’t move from his bed except to take sips of water. Monday morning rolled around and he didn’t care. He slept a lot. Nanao was constantly texting him or calling him. He ignored it. His flight would be leaving Wednesday night.

 

Nanao was trying to tell him a moving company would be there to pack up his stuff and whatever he wanted shipped from his father’s house. Ulquiorra told the assistant that he didn’t care.

 

“Don’t make me come out there. I left the Midwest when I went to college. I will never go back. If I do set foot in your city, I’m going to kick you in the ass,” the woman snapped at him.

 

Ulquiorra hung up on her. He scrolled through his Instagram messages, still staring at Orihime’s reply to him. There was no way he was going to class. He couldn’t face the stares and the jeers. He didn’t want to face anyone. 

 

He messaged her again. It sounded sorry. It sounded pathetic. 

 

ObscurasIV 

I am sorry.

She’s not my best friend. You’ve always told me that she’s not even my friend.

I never listened.

Maybe one day you can forgive me for being a moron.

<3 

 

After he sent it to her, Ulquiorra laid the phone down and rolled over onto his stomach, shutting his eyes. Sleep didn’t come to him. His phone buzzed ten minutes later though.

 

Nanao and her damn texts.

 

{ Your girlfriend has a new video out. Nice job dickhead.

 

He didn’t have the energy to reply.

 

***

 

Orihime was feeling pretty numb.  She got Ulquiorra’s message. She didn’t respond.  It didn’t matter if he didn’t think Nel was his friend or that he never listened to her.  He did what he did. He lied to her. He played her for a fool.

 

This wasn’t her first failed relationship, though.  She knew how to put one foot in front of the other and get through the day.  Grief could happen in the comfort of her own room on a more convenient schedule. It hurt like a bitch, though. Every waking moment was anguish, but she had some practice before this.

 

This was exponentially more heartbreaking than her previous failures, though.

 

Still, she went to school.  She explained to her speech and interpersonal communications teachers that Ulquiorra was likely dropping out and would not return, and asked to be able to finish her coursework on her own.  They told her as soon as they had confirmation of his withdrawal, they would tailor the assignments to her situation.

 

After classes she walked over to Sado’s.  Chad was actually out of town on a trip. His uncle was working the counter.  Chad had told him about the email, though. He talked to Orihime. She fibbed and said she had experience working in a bakery; Cifer Confections. She gave Jon’s number as a reference.  Chad’s uncle, Geraldo, decided to give her some midday shifts. Orihime took whatever was offered, whether or not it conflicted with classes.

 

When she got home that evening, she checked the comments on her new video.  It wasn’t as popular as the first one. It had only been viewed about twenty thousand times.  There were fewer than three hundred comments. ObscurasIV had not commented. She decided to go to bed early.

 

***

 

If Monday was hard, Tuesday was worse. Ulquiorra laid in bed and stared blankly at the ceiling. When his phone dinged or buzzed, he didn’t look at it. If it rang he ignored it. He didn’t know why this hurt so much. If he had chosen Nel over Orihime, why did he feel dead inside? He sniffled.

 

Physical pain was one thing, but emotional pain was worse. This was worse than the bee sting. This was worse than what Nel had put him through. 

 

By the time the afternoon rolled around, Ulquiorra was tired. He was tired of thinking. He was tired of feeling. He was tired of laying in bed. He was tired of everything. He hadn’t felt like this since 2017. 

 

He shook his head and laughed at himself. He was pathetic. Picking up the phone, he looked at the screen and all the notifications he had. People had tagged him in the Vega.Strife00 video. He had messages on Instagram. He had texts. He had emails. Ulquiorra didn’t want to deal with any of them.

 

Ulquiorra was an absolute mess. He hadn’t eaten since Friday morning. He hadn’t taken a shower since Friday night. He didn’t want to do any of that though. All he wanted to do was talk to Orihime. An idea struck him and he logged into his cloud service and clicked on contacts. Boom. He decided to dial the number.

 

“Hello?” her voice was whispering.  “Who is this?”

 

“Orihime?” Ulquiorra wasn’t sure why she was talking like that. “I got a new number.”

 

There was silence.  She was stunned. Why had he called her?  Finally, she said, “Oh.”

 

He could hear voices in the background and some clattering. Where was she? “We need to talk,” Ulquiorra said. He was stabbed in the heart by her one word reply. Not that he expected more than that, but it still hurt.

 

“I can’t talk right now, I’m at work,” her voice was higher than a whisper this time, but not much.

 

“Work?” The word rolled off his tongue as if it was a foreign thing. “When do you want to talk? I’m supposed to leave tomorrow night. I can postpone it for you.”

 

“Vega!  No phones!”

 

“I’m sorry, Mr. Sado!” she called back to the man’s voice in the background, then whispered, “I can’t.  Call me later,” and then hung up.

 

Well she didn’t hang up on him right away, that was a good thing, but she didn’t give him a concrete answer about talking to him. He sat up, with his back against the wall. She had said Sado. Maybe she was at Sado’s? Why was she working? Did this have anything to do with her aunt cutting her off?

 

He wanted to sit there and feel sorry for himself. He wanted to sit there and cry. Ulquiorra promised himself a long time ago that he wouldn’t make a fuss over a relationship. That’s what he was doing, though. He took a deep breath and installed YouTube. Once he was logged in, he ignored the comments. He typed Orihime’s username into the search and then tapped on her name when it came up. 

 

For some reason he wasn’t subscribed to her. He tapped the word. After rectifying that, he tapped on her newest video. 

 

Ulquiorra was not emotionally ready for the song she sang. He was not emotionally stable enough to listen to how haunting her voice sounded. By the time the chorus started he was crying. He was sobbing.

 

How could he be in so much pain?

 

The song she covered was _Let Go_ by Seven Lions.  The lyrics, “So we waited for rain, but it never came. I know that some things never change. Now we're here in the dust and I can't seem to trust anything will ever change” were sung with regret dripping from her vocal chords, but the absolute most painful part was the soft way she sang the chorus, “Maybe this is just the time to say goodbye; surrender as we let go”.

 

Ulquiorra did not know that Jon and Orihime had talked.  He didn’t know that she had performed this song because it reflected what she felt when she told Jon Cifer that Nel had won and there was nothing left for her to fight for.  But that feeling of defeat and sorrow came through loud and clear anyway.

 

The music stopped but his pain didn’t. His tears didn’t stop. An hour must have passed with him curled up into a ball. He wanted to say that this didn’t affect him at all.

 

He never realized how fragile he was. Ulquiorra Cifer seemed like an emotionless person. He didn’t react to anything. He let insults and compliments roll off his back. He was… Until Orihime Inoue entered his life. As soon as he felt like his vision wasn’t blurred by tears, Ulquiorra decided to comment.

 

ObscurasIV:

So hauntingly gorgeous the lyrics are and combined with your voice… It feels like my heart has been ripped out. Great job. The river never dried up, Veggs. Don’t let go.

 

Now that that was done and he felt drained, Ulquiorra decided to get out of bed. He needed to take things one step at a time. He took a shower. It didn’t help; the dark circles under his eyes said that his dreams were nothing but nightmares. He changed his sheets. He texted Nanao, telling her to push his flight back until Friday. He got dressed and left the room. He’d take the bus to Sado’s. 

 

When he got there, the place was not busy at all. Hopefully Orihime was still there.

 

Orihime was busing tables when he walked in.  She was dressed in black slacks and a white t-shirt with an espresso-colored waist apron on.  Her hair was pulled back in a braid. Her eyes and lips were swollen. She didn’t notice Ulquiorra come in.

 

He walked up to the counter and spied Chad’s helper behind the counter. She asked him what he wanted. Ulquiorra said, “Cappuccino, please.” He shelled out the money for the coffee and told the barista that he wanted a to go cup. 

 

He turned around and let his eyes sweep the place. He was not ready. The moment he saw her, Ulquiorra knew he was a dickhead. He was a scumbag. He deserved everything that was happening to him.

 

That was the moment she turned around and saw him.  At first she just stared. She didn’t know how to feel.  She was sad. She was in mourning. Her anger would come later. Her already red eyelids leaked a tear that left a trail on her unmade face.  This was no good. She needed this job. She began to walk toward Ulquiorra, wiping the evidence off her face and sniffing loudly before Mr. Sado saw.

 

His eyebrows knitted together and Ulquiorra shifted uncomfortably. 

 

“Jesse, Do you mind if I take my break now?  After I bring this back?” she asked, referring to the bussing container on her hip.

 

“Yeah, go for it Vega.  Ten minutes,” the dreadlocked woman replied.

 

Orihime looked at Ulquiorra.  “I’ll be out in a bit,” she said, turning to the back room.

 

When the woman was done making his coffee, Ulquiorra took it and sat down at the table near the door, just in case. His nerves were starting to get the best of him already. He shouldn’t have come here. He should have just left her alone and waited for her to forgive him. He fiddled with the paper cup while he waited.

 

She came out a minute later, folding up her apron and wiping her hands on a towel, which she left behind the bar before coming out to meet Ulquiorra.  “Do you think we can go outside or next door? I don’t want Mr. Sado to see me socializing.”

 

He nodded and stood up, waiting for her to lead the way. “So you’re actually working,” he stated.

 

“Well, yeah.  I don’t have a lot of other options.  I don’t have any gigs lined up and I’ve got about thirty dollars to my name, so this is it,” she said with a smile that didn’t go any higher than her lips.

 

Ulquiorra nodded as if he understood. He didn’t. He had just called his mom and basically guilt tripped her into his new phone and a bigger allowance. Once they were outside and away from the windows. He knew he had to ask some tough questions. “So, Orihime,” he started off but stopped, biting his lip.

 

She waited a minute, and when he didn’t continue, she asked, “What?”

 

Swallowing, he could feel his breath hitching. “Are you--Are you going to let go?” he asked.

 

Her brows furrowed as she looked up at him.  Why was he asking her that? “I don’t have a choice.  You’ve left me with nothing to hold on to.” She didn’t even make it through her sentence before her chin starting crumpling and her eyes refilled.

 

This was one time where he cursed not having his long hair. He couldn’t hide his face. She was right. With what he did, he’d taken everything. He had abandoned her. “Okay,” he said, turning his face from her. “Got it. I guess I’ll let you get back then. Sorry for coming here and bugging you.”

 

It felt like the inside of her head was engulfed in a loud roaring noise.  She couldn’t think. All she felt was confused. Why had he come here? To ask that question?  Obviously he knew the answer. He didn’t act surprised. “Is that what you wanted to know?” she finally asked.

 

She didn’t see him rapidly blinking his eyes to hold back his emotions. “No, I had other questions, but your silence has pretty much answered them and you’re going to let go so there’s no point in me even wasting your time anymore.”

 

Oh.  That anger she thought that wouldn’t come until later?  Here it was. Welcome to the party, anger. “You don’t get to say that to me!” she hissed through her tears.  “You don’t get to do this! You chose!”

 

“You’re right. I don’t. Okay. You’re done with me. I get where we stand with each other. I messed up,” Ulquiorra said. He used his hand to wipe his face.

 

She laughed humorlessly.  “This is not a mess up, Ulquiorra.  This was a long-game style sabotage.  You talked shit about me behind my back.  “Fucking Orihime” gets her “ass in a twist” that you low-key flirt with your ex behind my back and then nearly fuck her at a party while I am upstairs.  How small-minded of me,” she said, using air quotes around the words he had used in the screenshots and then crossed her arms under her breasts.

 

“How? What?” Ulquiorra’s face turned back to Orihime. She knew was that what the vlogger meant by screenshots? He might as well dig himself a deep hole. “I was drunk,” was all he had to offer, and even then his voice was weak.

 

Orihime scoffed.  “You still knew it was her.  You knew she wasn’t me. I heard what you said to her.  I heard every single word. You know, she laughed at me when I said I would call the cops for assaulting you? God, did I look like an idiot. I stood up for you! I tried to make sure you were safe.  I believed in you, despite what I saw. I would have never believed it if someone told me that you would ever do something like that.” Orihime looked toward the road and shook her head. She knew there would be no satisfactory answer he could offer.  It was what it was. He couldn’t deny any of it. “Besides, why would you accept drinks from her if you didn’t trust her? If you didn’t want anything to do with her?” she looked back at him and saw the huge, fading hickey on his neck. “You might want to invest in a scarf.”

 

Ulquiorra didn’t bother to cover the bruising on his neck. His lower lip trembled. He couldn’t say anything to counter her accusations. He never told Nel yes. She had done what she wanted and he’d had gone along with it as usual. It just seemed easier, and once the alcohol and that drug had hit his system, he was too relaxed and at ease to even think about it. He _had_ participated in it though. He’d seen his hands practically clawing at Nel. 

 

All of a sudden the cup in his hand wasn’t appealing. Ulquiorra looked around and saw a trash can and walked over to it, tossing the cup into it. He stood with his back to her and nodded. “Okay, Orihime. I’m sorry. I’ll leave you alone.”

 

There was nothing else to say.

 

***

 

Nanao actually fucking showed up at his door Wednesday. She was mad too. She had Ulquiorra out of bed and putting his stuff in boxes so it could be moved to a shipping crate. He packed enough to get him through a week. His guitar would also be a carry on item. His keyboard could always be replaced if it got broken. His laptop went into its bag. He stood on his bed and cleaned off the shelves that were on the wall, putting each item into the box after wrapping it up. He then cleaned out his desk drawers.

 

He couldn’t do that with his assistant standing there so he sent her to get him some coffee. The middle drawer came out and Ulquiorra just poured the contents into one box. The top side drawer he carefully put into the box. The next drawer got a smaller box. The last drawer he huffed a breath before he opened it. 

 

Inside were four pairs of panties and one bra that he’d “stolen” from Orihime. She practically handed them over after he came on them. He didn’t want to touch them. Would she want them back? Should he give them back? They didn’t even smell like her anymore because he had washed them. He got a gallon size baggie and picked up the underwear and placed the things inside before he threw them into a box. He gave Szayel the coffee maker, but didn’t know what to do with the plants. The only logical choice would be to give them to Orihime. His face took on a pained expression.

 

He was so focused on his thoughts that he didn’t hear the door open.

 

“Ulqui?”

 

That was a voice he didn’t want to hear. Why the fuck was Nel here? “Out.”

 

“I know I hurt you--”

 

“Get out, Nel.”

 

“If you let me--”

 

“GET THE FUCK OUT, NEL!”

 

That was loud. The door was open. Other people probably heard him screaming at her.

 

Ten minutes later, Nanao was back. She had coffee. She had food. There was no way Ulquiorra was going to eat. He picked up a cup of cappuccino and sipped on it. He gestured around the room. “All packed up,” he said.

 

“I see this. Good job. You don’t get a trophy for being a sad schmuck who is having a pity party for himself.” God this woman was a bitch.

 

“I have one more thing to pack up so, uh, the stuff on the bed goes with me. The rest of the boxes can be put in the crate,” Ulquiorra stated. “There’s nothing at my dad’s I need or want.”

 

Nanao raised an eyebrow at him. “Are you sure?”

 

Ulquiorra nodded. He grabbed his keys and other things and then grabbed the two plants. “I’ll be back in about thirty minutes,” he said.

 

“Where are you going?”

 

“To say goodbye to some people?”

 

Nanao didn’t say anything as he left.

 

As soon as he was in the lobby of the building Ulquiorra set one of the plants down and got his phone out. As usual, he sent a DM to Orihime.

 

ObscurasIV 

Are you at work? Class? Room? 

 

Vega.Strife00 

Why?  I’m at home.  I have class at 4:30.

 

Orihime had contemplated not answering, but Jon had said he was leaving today.  She felt sick.

 

ObscurasIV 

I’m leaving tonight, like in a couple hours

I’m gonna drop something off at the front desk

I could leave it in your room.

I don’t want to invade your space

 

If he wasn’t careful, Ulquiorra was going to start crying, and that was the last thing he needed. He didn’t want to start crying in public and have more fuel for the gossip hag.

 

Vega.Strife00 

You’re not coming back, are you?

I’ll come down and say goodbye.

 

The last he told her it was just a short business trip and he would finish the semester.  She wondered when it was that he started keeping her out of the loop.

 

ObscurasIV 

We can talk about that when I get there, if you want

I’d much rather just leave them in front of your door and run though.

 

She shook her head.  If he wanted to cut and run, she wouldn’t stop him.

 

Vega.Strife00 

Do what you have to do.

 

A few minutes later she had a thought.  It needed an answer.

 

Vega.Strife00 

You were never going to tell me, were you?

 

Ulquiorra looked at the message and decided to send Orihime the same message she had once sent him.

 

ObscurasIV 

Not a text-based conversation to have.

 

Fuck this. They didn’t have time. She called him.

 

He heard his phone ringing. He had to set one of the plants on a low brick wall before digging it out of his pocket. It was Orihime. “This is not a phone conversation to have either,” he said in a calm voice.

 

She hung up.  What the fuck did he mean then?  He didn’t want to see her. He didn’t want to tell her via text.  He didn’t want to do it via phone. Fine. She’d have to live without knowing.

 

Ulquiorra got to her dorm in seven minutes. Some woman opened the door for him and he walked over to the door he always used. He didn’t run up them like he normally did. He couldn’t, not with the plants in his arms. Second floor and fifth door on the left. Ulquiorra knew he should talk to Orihime, so he gently kicked her door once he arrived at it. He could have put her combination in and then just slid the plants inside, but that would be a cheap move and she probably changed it.

 

She knew who it would be.  She stood up and took a deep breath, then opened the door.  She saw green.

 

“May I come in?” He knew that he was asking for a lot when he said those words.

 

She stepped aside. “Okay.”

 

When he walked in, Ulquiorra set the plants on Orihime’s desk. “Um, they need to be watered once a week. Usually I just stick a couple of ice cubes in there. They need sunny places. Um,” he didn’t know what else to say.

 

“Why didn’t you tell me you weren’t coming back?”  she got right to it.

 

“I said we would talk about it,” Ulquiorra replied. He had his back to her and was fiddling with the plants. “If we’re done, there’s no reason for me to come back. You’ll move on just like you did with Mr Brazil and I’ll get some stupid nickname.”

 

“Do you believe the shit that comes out of your mouth?  Do you expect me to believe this is a decision that was made in the past couple of days?”

 

“I felt bad for asking you to drop everything and come with me. I felt like a piece of shit for asking you to drop your education just because this is something I could do. I didn’t want you to get into a fight with your aunt about it,” Ulquiorra said. He had to take deep breaths to keep from getting upset. “It happened anyway. Now you’re done with her. You’re working. It’s all because I said, yeah trash your opportunities and come be with me.”

 

Orihime took a deep breath.  It made her sound tired. “No. It happened because I planned for it to happen.  I told you before we got together that I planned for my recital to be my last classical performance.  I had always planned on breaking my affiliation with Aizen. I never planned on finishing out the semester as his student.  It would have happened with or without you. I told you this.”

 

Ulquiorra turned around but kept his face turned away from Orihime. The floor was really fucking interesting at the moment. “Chad told me not to let you bog me down. My mom told me that you wouldn’t be good for my image. My band manager wanted me with someone more edgy. I didn’t want to stifle an opportunity for either of us. You could have a great career doing whatever you want. I might fail at this and then where would I be?”

 

“Stop.  Just stop.  I get it.” There was a small smile on her face.  It was fake as hell. “I get it. Good luck. Don’t let the sharks eat you up.”

 

He didn’t want her telling him good luck. He didn’t want luck from her. She didn’t get it. He was under a lot of pressure and listening to other people about his life. There had been a lot of conversations with his manager about his image. Vega was too much of a goody two shoes. She gave him the wrong vibe. Ulquiorra didn’t give a fuck. He loved her. The guy told him to keep her but he may not get a good deal.

 

His shoulders shook from the force of the sob that he held back. He had passed up on things when he was tied to Nel. He didn’t want to do that with Orihime. He wanted this opportunity… At least he thought he wanted it.

 

She watched him.  She didn’t say anything.  This was his life. His choice.  He had decided she was unnecessary, and who was she to try to change his mind?  They weren’t even together that long. In the end they were just anonymous internet pen pals.  He’d gone back to his fucked up and toxic true love, Nel. It wasn’t her life. It wasn’t her choice.  “I know you’ll do great. I told you a long time ago that I believed you could do it if you wanted to do it,” she stopped talking because her nose was tingling and the left corner of her mouth was spasming uncontrollably.  She didn’t think she could cry anymore. Her wet cheeks told a different story. She swallowed hard to steady her voice. “I still do.”

 

“Thank you.” He nodded. His voice sounded like garbage. “Do you want me to stay gone? Do you want me to come back? Do--” His shoulders shook again, making his words waver. “Are we done?”

 

Her face crumbled and she couldn’t take it anymore.  She choked and sputtered and sat on her bed and squeaked as tiny gasps left her mouth.  “It’s not fair for you to ask me that. You already made the decision,” she somehow spat those words out between the god-awful, painful, whole body jerks that caused her to hiccup.

 

“Well, okay. Since you let me make it and want nothing else to do with me, take care of the plants, and if you’re going to throw them out do it tomorrow, okay?” His voice finally broke as he moved away from the desk. He couldn’t stand this anymore.

 

“No!  You don’t get to blame me for this! I didn’t _let_ you do anything."  She would have screamed it, but she couldn't.  It came out breathy.

 

“I never blamed you Orihime. I’m blaming myself.” Pause. The anger was welling up inside of him, but he had no right to be angry. Ulquiorra took another step towards the door. “I am giving you a chance and a choice now. Otherwise, I’m going to go to the airport and we become nothing. I don’t want us to be over. I’ve made a lot of stupid decisions over the past two months. You haven’t been one of them and I don’t regret you.”

 

This was not fair.  It wasn’t fair. “I want to.  I want to tell you not to go. I want to tell you to stay with me.  I want to tell you to go back to the point in time where you had some faith in me.  I want to tell you to be the person I thought I could trust. I don’t know what was real and what wasn’t.  Was anything pure? Were there always secrets? Was there always…” She stopped. She could go on and on about her doubts for hours. She may as well lay out the brass tacks. “Nel will always win. She always has. I cannot compete with that. I will not compete with that.  I deserve to feel secure and unthreatened in my primary relationship. As long as she is a part of your life, I never will.”

 

He nodded. “Everything about us was pure until I started doubting everything about me. I started doubting myself. I can tear myself down pretty quickly. When I start doubting myself and questioning things, I lose faith in other people. Nel came to see me today. I think she knew I was leaving?” Ulquiorra said as if it was a question or he was unsure. He sniffled and wiped his eyes. “I told her to get the fuck out. I screamed it at her. You… You don’t know what she’s done to me but--” Once again Ulquiorra couldn’t go on. “This is like the third time she’s tried to kill me. Not literally, but she’s ruined my world at the moment.”

 

“And yet, you can’t stay away.” Orihime said, her voice resigned.

 

Ulquiorra shook his head. “I can’t make you think a certain way Orihime. If I’m in California and she’s here, I have no choice but to stay away.” He sighed.

 

“That’s bullshit.  She could always go out there.  There’s always the internet. You give yourself excuses to be weak.  You give yourself excuses to believe that you don’t have a choice. It has always been your choice.  You just keep making the wrong one,” she explained.

 

That’s what she really thought of him. She thought he was weak. That he was a fuck up. Seemed like heartbreak always made the truth come out. There’d be no more conversations about music with Vega or bitching about their problems to each other. Ulquiorra closed his eyes and thought about all the messages between them. All the kisses and touches. He had given himself to her. Yeah, it was just his body but it had been a big thing to him. He wasn’t sure about love, but he knew that this hurt. Walking away from Orihime hurt. “Like I said, please wait until tomorrow if you’re going to throw the plants out. I’m sorry that I let you down, Veggs.”

 

He had.  She couldn’t argue with that.  “I’ll take care of them,” she said.  Then she looked up at his face. This might be the last time she ever saw him. It probably was.  “I know you don’t believe me, but I really loved you,” she whimpered.

 

“Same.” He had given her plenty of chances to stop him. It was time to go. Ulquiorra looked at Orihime. He wanted to reach out to her. Instead he walked to her door then stopped. “I know you won’t believe me, but I am sorry and I do love you,” he said before he opened the door. 

 

The pain in her chest was so intense. She was quiet when she got off the bed and walked up behind him, resting her head against his back and bringing her arms around his front.  “I really hope we meet again someday,” she sobbed into the back of his shirt, sniffing up an unpleasant sound through her nose. Why was this so hard?  That was a stupid question. She knew why. She _knew_. They loved each other. At least that's what she believed. But love wasn’t enough. No. They were _in love_ with each other.  But being in love was a state of being.  Love was an action. Love was a choice.  Love was a choice they must have failed to make, because here he was, leaving.  He had to go. She stepped back.

 

Ulquiorra turned around and hugged Orihime, letting himself cry. He couldn’t do this. He didn’t want to do this. She was the only reason he had this opportunity and he had shit on her to get to the top. He let the tears out. It took several minutes before he was calmed down. There was a chance that he’d never get to graze his fingertips against her skin. There was a chance he’d never get to hear about how her day went again. He probably wouldn’t sing with or to her again. “Message me okay? Tell me about your day. I don’t care if it’s boring or you had a bad day, I want to hear about it,” he said with shaky breaths. “Tell me how the plants are doing. Tell me anything okay?”

 

Orihime nodded.  She knew she may not be able to keep this promise forever, but she hoped she could.  “I will. You too, okay?”

 

Of course, Ulquiorra didn’t let her go. He didn’t want to. “I can get you a ticket out there. I’ll be back. Just tell me when and I’ll hop on a plane,” he said. In his ears it sounded like he was pleading with Orihime.

 

She was weak, too, of course.  The emotions she felt were crushing, and his pleas were giving her hope for a respite.  “Okay, okay,” she nodded into his shoulder, desperate to believe that somehow they could work this out.

 

It was hard for him to step back from her. All he wanted to do was lose himself in her eyes. He wanted to forget about the rest of the world and its problems. Ulquiorra let out a small chuckle but it was happy. He had acted like a damn baby. “I’ve got to go,” he told her with a little whine. “I told Nanao that I’d only be a half hour. I mean I could totally ditch her and we could just sit and stare at each other until you have to go.” He knew he couldn’t, though. “I love you, Vega.”

 

“I love you too, Ulquiorra.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is the end of the first part of the Consonance and Dissonance series. I REPEAT. THIS IS THE END OF PART ONE ONLY. Part two is titled "Atonal" and will be posted in two weeks (December 20th is the projected date), so STAY TUNED!

**Author's Note:**

> EspadaIV can be reached at [HERE ON TUMBLR](http://espada-iv.tumblr.com/)  
> JKRobertson can be reached at [HERE ON TUMBLR](https://jkrobertson.tumblr.com/)


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